Skewed Destinies- The Flames of Origin
by Keko-the-Hybrid
Summary: Join Colloyd the dual wielder, Kraine the teacher turned mysteriously talented swordsman, and Gesea the kendaxe magic user as they make their unique journey of regeneration. Soon accompanied by other friends, they will learn that their world is in more trouble than its declining mana. Is their reality really as normal as they originally thought?
1. No time for pancakes It's Oracle time!

**A/N: **Hi everyone! Keko here. I'm a fiction writer and have only recently ventured into the realm of fanfiction after my renewed obsession with Tales of Symphonia when it was released on the Ps3! I played it many years ago on the GameCube and it has stuck with me for so long.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Tales of Symphonia, its original plot, characters or locations. I do take credit for the original themes contained within the plot of this story though.

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**Chapter 1 **

**No time for pancakes. It's Oracle time!**

* * *

"Colloyd Bruving," called an impatient voice. There was silence. The red-clad dual wielder fluttered his eyes open the second time his name was called. He started back, dropping the two buckets of water he had been holding as punishment to the floor and leaving a nice mess for the cleaners later. Staring into his face with one eyebrow raised and a disapproving glare in his piercing blue eyes was his teacher of the past three years.

The elven scholar grunted something under his breath and turned away from his pupil, walking back past the class and standing near the blackboard at the front. "Would someone who has been awake this lesson please answer my question so that Colloyd might understand the homework for tonight?"  
The room filled with stifled laughs from other students. A pink haired elven girl in the second row of tables from the front grimaced, knowing that if nobody shot their hand up in the next five seconds that she would be easy pickings. Kraine knew she knew the answer and sometimes exploited that. You couldn't live with a teacher and _not _pick up a thing or two.

Right on cue, the teacher placed one hand on her shoulder and glanced down at her. "Gesea, please tell the class the answer."

"Must I, brother?" she complained, rolling her eyes.

"I apologise," Kraine replied, taking his hand off of her shoulder and deciding to answer the question himself.

"The answer is that the Goddess Martel is responsible for what we now know as the Oracle. Scholars believe that to end war, Martel and her brother Mithos made a pact with an ancient summon spirit named Origin. Mithos was sacrificed and Martel became an angel. With Martel becoming an angel, the summon spirit Origin regenerated the world and Sylvarant flourished. Throughout history since then, a Chosen of Salvation has been born clutching a strange ex-sphere, and a white light from the temple of Martel has been seen. This is known as the Oracle and is said to be a symbol from Martel that the Chosen must once again re-flourish the world by meeting with Origin in the tower of Salvation." After completing his explanation, he cast a weary eye on Colloyd.

The boy shrugged. "Not like I don't know all that already."

"Yes Colloyd. I am aware that you have been taught this since you were very young. However, should the Oracle strike in your or your childrens lifetimes, it would be wise to keep your memory fresh." He glanced down at the boys left hand, wrapped in a bandage. Colloyd shifted, uncomfortable with his eyes on him. Kraine shrugged it off and turned back to the blackboard. "Now, as for tonights homew-"

He stopped when the wooden floorboards of their school shook and every single pair of eyes in the room looked toward the window. As though their lesson had shook awake the Goddess herself, a white beam of light now streamed out of the Temple of Martel, shortly to the east of their little village. A tingle travelled down his spine. _"It is time." _He looked at Colloyd briefly and headed for the door of the classroom. "If that is indeed the Oracle, the Priests will know to come here and find you. I shall make the journey now to the temple." Before either Gesea or Colloyd could argue, he left the school house.

"Colloyd!" Gesea said, running to him with her eyes wide and looking kind of excited. "Do you really think that could be the Oracle?"

"I don't know," Colloyd answered with equal zeal, "we should go and find out!"

"But the Professor said-"

"But it's research," Colloyd cut her off quickly.

The pink haired elf flushed a bit and gave a defeated sigh. "Guess there is not a way to stop you, so I may as well join you."  
Colloyd gave her a cheesy grin and took her arm, running out of the classroom and almost tripping on the little step that had been there much longer than he himself had.

xxx

"I'm surprised we haven't bumped into the Professor on the road here," Colloyd mused to his shorter friend as they made their way quickly through the field. "With all the monsters here I thought he'd be slowed down."

Gesea grimaced. "I do not think anyone could slow Kraine down. He is quite.. travelled, to say the least."

"That's right. The two of you travelled for a long time to get to Iselia, didn't you?"

Gesea looked down and said nothing. "Sorry," Colloyd apologised. "I forget you guys have an invisible line that can't be crossed when talking about that."

"Sorry Col," Gesea replied. "Maybe one day I'll tell you all about our journey." Her eyes glinted with excitement as they finally stepped onto the cobblestone ground which led up a narrow stairway straight into the temple of Martel. "In the meantime, let's focus on the start of what might be _your _epic journey!"

"Right!" he grinned in response. "Race ya to the top!"

xxx

No sooner had the brown and pink haired duo reached the top of the steps, they were faced with a horror they hadn't expected. Several of the temple priests were lying on the ground clutching various parts of their bodies while groaning in pain. Colloyd and Gesea approached one they recognised. She wasn't a priest but more an official go-between of the Chosen and anyone with business with the Chosen.

Naturally Colloyd looked over her frail form with horror. "Phaidra! Are you hurt?"

The old woman smiled at Colloyd. "Only a small wound, Chosen. I will just need to rest for a while. Please run.. away.." Her voice croaked and she fell backward. Colloyd looked over her, his hands shaking. She was still breathing but there was no way that he could run. He looked at Gesea, who looked rather conflicted. She knew the look on Colloyd's face well enough and with a courageous nod she stood with him and they both looked to the doorway of the temple. There was a battle happening inside, judging from the various yells of unknown villains and priests alike.

"I hope the Professor is okay," Colloyd said, resolve strengthening as he ran inside with Gesea at his tail.

He didn't have to wonder for very long on that matter though. Standing with his back to them and surrounded by Desians was their one and only orange and purple cloaked professor. Colloyd went to call out but was muffled by the charge of the Desians on the elf. The charge ended as quickly as it started and every Desian in all directions fell to their knees, gashes appearing on their bodies. Colloyd gaped at the Professor, seeing the sword in his right hand slicked with the blood of his assailants. Blinking back his shock, he stepped toward his teacher. The auburn haired elf abruptly turned in their direction, pointing his sword. He stopped when he realised who they were.

"I thought I told you two to stay at school," he said. "This is no place for children."

"It's no place for a teacher either," Colloyd replied, grinning at him. "But I'm not a normal child, and you're not a normal teacher."

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**A/N: Thus ends the first kickstarting (albeit rather short) chapter. Subsequent chapters will be much longer! Please review and let me know what you think so far. **


	2. Remiel and the revelations

**A/N: **Hello everyone who has read the first chapter of my fanfic. This chapter is much longer than the first, (as promised). As I'm still new to the way FF works, I tend to upload and then come back and edit the way it looks once I see that it isn't quite right. Getting the formatting right seems to be a bit difficult at the moment. If you see an update as it happens, give it about half an hour after unless you don't mind reading it the way it comes at first.

**Disclaimer:** Still don't own Tales of Symphonia, its original story, characters or locations...although my computer has seen so many AMV's recently that it probably thinks I do! I do take credit for some plot and original themes within this story though.

**Let's get on with the story!**

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**Chapter 2**

**Remiel and the revelations**

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"I am a scholar who simply knows how to defend myself," Kraine replied. It was a weak explanation and even a relatively inexperienced and self-taught boy like Colloyd should have been able to see right through it. It was Gesea that spoke up first though as she walked to his side, glancing at the dead Desians in a circle surrounding the stoic older man. "I thought you did not use your sword anymore brother."

"There are times which call for the sword over the brain," Kraine said in his typical big brother voice to her. "We must not forget that in such turbulent times."

"You're hiding something," Gesea said with a roll of her eyes. She ran a hand through her pink hair. "You have not declined in your experience which suggests a high likelihood that you have been training in secret."

"We can discuss this later," Kraine said, sounding irritated before resting his eyes on Colloyd. "I suppose that no matter what I say to you, you will just continue to foolishly head to the Oracle?"

"I'm the Chosen, remember?" Colloyd said with an indignant grin. "That's kinda my job."

"This temple feels ominous. There are many monsters about," Kraine started. "It would not do to let you make the journey through alone. I shall see you have safe passage." He looked at Gesea. "Go home Gesea."

Gesea startled back. "But.. Kraine.."

"It's okay, you can come," Colloyd said. When Kraine went to start on him with the reasons why she shouldn't come, he came back with a retort of his own. "I feel much more comfortable with Gesea around. Seeing you using a sword like you've been doing it for years is making me a bit uneasy."

"Hmph," Kraine muttered. "I suppose I can keep a better eye on Gesea if she journeyed with us. Let us head into the temple to find the sorcerers ring to unlock the door to the Oracle." He walked ahead of the children, trying to keep a level head as they started talking about how cool the journey of regeneration might be. "This isn't a field trip, you know," he called back to them.

Their first battle was with a weak field slime. Kraine had seen them a million times, but obviously Colloyd had not since he was more interested in getting close enough to feel it rather than fight it. He was rewarded for his curiosity when the slime decided it did not want to be touched and sent the pink core which resided within itself flying out at him and hitting him in the head like a rampant ping pong ball. Kraine dashed in shortly after and made short work of the enemy; clicking his sword back into its sheath when he was done. Colloyd raised one fist into the air in excitement after he put his own barely used weapons back into their respective sheaths. "Yeah! We did it!"

"We? I had thought you were observing," Kraine said. The teenager gave a cry of retort but no actual words. The Professor-turned-strangely-talented-swordsman's eyes on him turned into a disapproving scowl. "Using a chakram and a sword is a terrible way to fight, Colloyd."

"Why? It gives me range _and _strength," he replied. "Plus you only have _one_ sword. I've gotta have at least double the chance in battle that you do."

"Are you telling me that is why you insist on dual weapons?" Colloyd was sure he had seen a brief flicker of pity in his eyes at that.

xxx

The three of them wound their way around the outer passage of the main room to find the stairs which led to where the sorcerers ring was located. It was a measure to keep unwanted visitors out of the temple, but now as they entered the room, they saw the large boulder type monster guarding the passage.

"Look!" he said to his companions, heading right for it as he tried to remember how to deactivate it. The priests had told him multiple times but he had always been too distracted by wanting to get his hands on the ring and try it for himself. Even now as he saw the ring on the pedestal behind the monster he had a familiar buzz of excitement forming in his gut. _"It's got to have an off switch," _he thought as he approached it.

When it made a loud grunting sound and raised its arms to pound him to the ground, he was caught off guard. Kraine stepped in front and blocked the attack with his sword to give him enough time to move out of the range. He proceeded to throw the chakram in his left hand at the enemy. Its eyes followed the disk that frequently had been used as a fetch toy for his dog as though mesmerised. It was then that Colloyd dashed in and slashed at the monster. Kraine arrived at the back of the golem and slashed as well. The collective lump of multiple rocks and gears fell to the ground with a thud, finally allowing them passage.

After the group had made to take the sorcerers ring, they headed back to the front of the temple to the main room with the magic seal which blocked the entrance to the oracle room. Colloyd's unwavering excitement was unsettling to Kraine and he tried his best to warn him that this was the very start of a dangerous journey. He looked at Gesea and tried to figure out how he was going to go about what he needed to do without impacting the girl too harshly. The people of Iselia village would surely take her in and look after her. The thought of leaving her unsettled him somewhat since he had for a very long time been present to keep a watchful if not somewhat nervous eye on her.

The turquoise coloured double doors screeched open to reveal a glowing light. An angel descended down from the top of the roof, his hair a deep brown and his wings the typical type one would expect on an angel. Kraine watched Colloyd instead as he approached the altar and waved excitedly. "Wow," Gesea said under her breath. "Do you think he could be Col's real father?"

Kraine didn't answer because the angel spoke, his voice soft but commanding. "I am Remiel. I am an angel of judgment. I am here to guide Colloyd, the son of the mana lineage, on his journey to heaven as the seventh Chosen." He descended a little closer to the group, holding out his hand. His palm glowed and a red shape appeared in it before floating closer to Colloyd. It flashed a bright white for a moment before attaching itself to Colloyd's left hand where his cruxis crystal sat atop the key crest his Dad had made.

"From this moment forth, Colloyd is the Chosen of regeneration. We of Cruxis bless this event and bestow the Tower of Salvation upon Sylvarant."

Upon hearing about the tower, neither Colloyd or Gesea could resist looking out of the window of the temple for a moment to see the tower off in the distance, just as Remiel had said. It was Kraine who gently put his hand on Colloyd's shoulder to remind him that they were still in the presence of an angel. Colloyd turned back to Remiel, putting his hand behind his neck in an embarrassed stance. "Oops, sorry."

"Colloyd, the Chosen of Regeneration, unlock the seals of the world to open the path into the Tower of Salvation and climb its stairs to heaven in distant lands."

Colloyd stood in awe of the situation until Gesea nudged him to answer. He blinked and nodded enthusiastically at him. "I humbly accept this task."  
Remiel gave a small, if what seemed a sort of unnatural smile. "Very well. We shall bestow you with the power of the angels with each seal you unlock. Once you become an angel you will be able to ascend to heaven and meet Origin. In doing so the world will flourish. First head south to the Seal of Fire and offer your prayers at the altar there."

Colloyd nodded and watched as the angel started to ascend. "Please wait! I have a question!"

Remiel stopped and looked down at him expectantly. "Go now, my precious son Colloyd. I will be waiting for you at the Seal of Fire."

Colloyd stared as the angel disappeared for good this time. Gesea and Kraine allowed him his surprise over the current turn of events for a time before suggesting they leave and head back to the village.

xxx

As they were about to head out of the temple, they heard a familiar yell from an old woman. "Phaidra!" Colloyd yelled. "I thought the Desians had left!" They all raced out to see an elven looking man with a pointed face and spiky black hair holding onto the little old lady. A bunch of Desian troops stood around him.

"Get away from her!" Colloyd shouted.

The elf turned in their direction, his eyes scanning them. "Is this the Chosen?"

"If you are going to ask who I am, I would first like to know who you are!" Colloyd sneered. Kraine almost rolled his eyes. Colloyd may as well have added a 'please' at the end of his sentence for all the good his attempt at a threatening stance had done. The elf gave a low chuckle and glanced past the boy to look at his much taller companion. "Hmm. I had not expected to see you here." He looked at Phaidra and then at Colloyd. "Do not sleep easy Chosen."

Letting Phaidra go, he ran away with the rest of his troops down the steps of the temple and out of sight. Colloyd looked over the woman and sighed with relief. "Thank goodness you are okay." He looked up at Kraine who harrumphed at knowing what he was going to ask. He glanced back at the temple longingly. He had hoped to find some time to examine the building closer before continuing on with what must be done. It would have been the perfect opportunity too. Heaving a sigh he knelt down with his back to the woman.

xxx

After Kraine had carried the old woman back to Iselia, all the while trying to keep the two children under his watchful supervision, they all sat around her dining table talking about what was to come next.

"You were very impressive with your sword skills," Phaidra complemented him.

Kraine shifted uncomfortably. "I suppose this is where you offer me compensation in return for my promise to aid the Chosen on his journey?"

"What?" Gesea asked, gaping along with Colloyd.

The old woman's mouth shot up in a small smirk for a second. "Remarkable. How did you know?"

Kraine blinked in confusion. "I suppose I simply saw it coming."

"I see. Yes that pretty much covers it," Phaidra nodded.

Kraine looked over at the children briefly before turning to them and nodding. "I have no reason to say no to a request as long as you are able to pay me."

"You can't be serious," Colloyd gaped. "The _Professor_? Surely there are _actual _mercenaries fitter for the job?"

Kraine immediately felt the urge to find a piece of chalk and throw it at the brunette boys head. Instead he settled on a meaningful glare. "Do you have a problem with that?" He asked him, standing from his spot at the table and heading to the door. Gesea got up from her seat too and followed behind to leave. Colloyd shook his head, knowing any other answer would end in Kraine, Phaidra and her husband scolding him for being so brash. Following reluctantly, he bid goodbye and stepped outside.

As he stepped out of the house and toward his friend and teacher, he caught his foot on the slight raise of wood on the balcony which led to the steps and sent himself flying straight into the dirt at Kraine's feet. Gesea giggled girlishly at him before attempting to help him up. Of course, considering her short stature, Colloyd found himself doing most of the work.

"I suppose now would be a good time to go to your house?" Kraine asked him after a small silence between them ensued.

Colloyd glanced left to right at the suggestion and Gesea grimaced. "C'mon Col, surely you can trust us by now right?"

"It's not _me,_" Colloyd explained with a sigh. "Dad doesn't like exposing our house to anyone. He's always been worried about someone coming after me."

"Hmm, wise," Kraine nodded. "Though it seems as though he is not your real father, correct?"

Colloyd glanced down again for the second time in as many minutes. "Remiel said he was my real father, but Dirk is still my dad. He never told me but I think he and I both knew that I wasn't biologically related to him. It was pretty obvious when I learned I was the Chosen and a descendant of angels. I'd have to get angel blood from somewhere to _be _the Chosen, right?"

"And you are sure you didn't get it from your mother?"

Colloyd grimaced and shook his head. "I'm double Dad's height. I'm almost sure I'm not part dwarf." He tilted his head in question. "You're sure asking a lot of questions all of a sudden."

"Forgive me for prying," Kraine replied, walking ahead to the exit of Iselia. Guards glanced at him as he approached and set their eyes on the two youngsters he had in tow. As they gave friendly nods and left, Colloyd hoped his Dad had expected this to happen one day. He had once asked to invite Gesea over but had been scolded and asked to repeat all one-hundred and thirty-four dwarven vows before he had been allowed to eat supper that night.

xxx

Colloyd led his companions through the forest to the slight north-east of Iselia, past a pathway that led to a human ranch and to a small clearing with a lake and a bridge. Clear ahead he could see the wooden log house that belonged to his dad and a green and white 'dog' charging clear for him with an excited yelp.

"Noishe!" he exclaimed, trying to calm the beast down as it kept speeding right for them. With only enough time to pull Gesea out of the way, the dog tackled Kraine to the ground and proceeded to attempt to lick him to death. It took them both to pull him away from the Professor to allow him the chance to get to his feet. His eyes stayed on Noishe. Colloyd laughed uncomfortably and apologised, swiftly introducing the pet to them. Neither of them seemed to believe he was a dog though for some weird reason. Noishe was loads of fun to play fetch with and he growled and whined too. He _had _to be a dog.

Leading the two in closer toward the door of the house, Colloyd started to get even more nervous. He'd never had visitors and was glad that he had cleaned his room recently. Buying himself time to think of what to say when he introduced them to his Dad, he took the two of them to the left of the house and down a short cobble path. It was a ritual of his anyway. "Hi mum," he called habitually as he leaned down in front of a large stone headstone. "I'm home."

"This is where your mother rests?" Kraine asked, looking over the boy to see the name on the grave. Gesea nodded her head in respect. Colloyd got back to his feet. "Yeah, but I won't bore you with the details of what happened to her." He left it silent in case they had anything else to say, but when it felt awkward he grinned and pumped one fist in the air. "Alright! Let's go and see Dad!"

"Yes," Gesea said, also pumping her fist in the air and trooping after him. Kraine paused for a brief moment, nodding his head in respect to the grave also before following them.

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**A/N: **While I was seeking some reviews for inspiration, I appreciate my readers nevertheless! If you have time though, it would be great to get some feedback. I can guarantee that while it may seem like the done-to-death re-hash of the story plot line, it will be _very _different. I am hoping you all can notice how different it will end up being already.


	3. Friends, figurines and fate

**A/N:** Hiiiiiiiii everyone! Hope you have been enjoying it so far. I felt inspired to write and so I ended up finishing this chapter sooner than normal. So you all get to have one a bit earlier. Please let me know what you think by clicking the shiny review button!

**Disclaimer:** Nope, still don't own Tales of Symphonia, its original plot or locations. Please don't sue me! I do take credit for original aspects of this plot however.

On with the show!

* * *

**Chapter 3**

**Friends, figurines and fate**

* * *

"And you brought 'em _here?" _Dirk asked, his face a little paler than usual. He glanced at the pink haired elf and into the steely blue gaze of the auburn haired teacher.

"We're sorry to be an inconvenience Dirk," Kraine explained. He had always found it difficult to level with the dwarf and had always come to dread parent-teacher meetings. Dirk, while he looked rough around the edges, was always extremely protective of his son. While he had understood the need for Colloyd to study harder to pass his science and mathematics tests, he had softened the news on the usually red-clad boy sitting nervously with them by praising him for his amazing grades in art, woodwork and P.E. Kraine briefly thought about discussing it there and then and perhaps the mixed messages the boy was getting but quickly thought better of it. _"Besides.. It is not as though it matters now," _he thought, absently listening to Colloyd finish his explanation on the events of the day. He swallowed thickly and made sure to remain expressionless when he saw Gesea glancing up at him.

Dirk relaxed his tensed up shoulders and smiled up at Colloyd finally. "Aye. It would not do any good to be angry with my only son now when he's going to be leaving me soon."

"A..about that... Dad.." Colloyd stammered.

Dirk waved him away. "Don't you be sayin' a word, son. I love ya like you were one of me own and ya will always have a place to come back to, after this whole regeneration thing is complete." He glanced up at Kraine. "You be taking very good care of him, you hear?"

_"Dad," _Colloyd groaned, an embarrassed flush evident on his face. "I can look after myself y'know!"

"And don't I know it all too well," Dirk sighed. "Kids grow up too fast." Before he even finished his sentence, Colloyd had headed for the stairs and called Gesea up to join him in his bedroom. Kraine craned his neck to look at the upper balcony for a moment, listening to the excited voices of the children.

"No need to worry," Dirk said to him. "Colloyd is a good lad. Your sister is not in any kind of the usual danger."

Kraine shook his head and levelled eye contact once again with the dwarf. "You have my solemn word that I will ensure he completes this journey safely. However, I can not guarantee that the same boy will return to you."

There was silence between the two men as Dirk thought about his words. He eventually gave a hearty laugh that no doubt Colloyd had picked up over the years. "I suppose it's only a matter of time. I get the feelin' that he be leaving a boy but returning a man."

"Experience does tend to do that," Kraine agreed. Dirk nodded and headed to his small kitchen to put the kettle on. "Take a seat. I think those kids are going to be a while."

Kraine reluctantly took a seat at the table, thankful that the chairs were not sized for a dwarf like most of the appliances and work stations around the house seemed to be. "I suppose I can allow them one last evening together."

xxx

"Wow! Is this really for me?" Gesea asked as she cupped her hands around the gift that Colloyd had presented to her only moments earlier. It was a hand-made wooden figurine of the pet she had met earlier for the first time, Noishe. The detail was exquisite and when she ran her fingers over all the little grooves in the woodwork, she almost expected it to feel fluffy.

"I was going to paint it," Colloyd said shyly, shifting his feet a bit. "But guess I ran out of time."

"It's fantastic!" Gesea grinned up at him. "Thank you Col!" She flew into an embrace with him, to which he uttered a small nervous laugh.

"My Dad would say it's only average, five out of ten. Then he would warn me not to blame my tools before citing dwarven vow number fifty-five. _A bad workman blames his tools." _He sighed deeply and Gesea moved away from him, giggling.

"Tell me all the dwarven vows again?"

"Okay, but I'm not saying number seven!"

The two adults below listened as Gesea yelled the corniest dwarven vow of all. "Justice and love will always win!"

"I have always been curious," Kraine started to Dirk. "Just who thinks of these vows anyway?"

"The oldest dwarves in history," Dirk explained simply as he sipped the soup he had made for supper.

"I see," Kraine answered shortly, pulling his attention away to listen again to the kids. They were talking quietly now. He turned his attention to a window on the west wall of the house which faced out to the grave stone almost directly.

Dirk saw him looking and grimaced. "I found Col when he was barely walkin'. Assumed he was about three years old. His ma out there was dyin' from an attack. Looked like she might'a had something the Desians at the ranch wanted. There was nothing I could do except give 'er a good resting place." When he noticed Kraine looking unsettled, he swiftly apologised. "Sorry. We dwarves aren't exactly great conversation makers."

"No, it is alright," Kraine shook his head. "It is a good thing that you found the boy when you did. He might have died otherwise."

"Aye. It must have been fate."

When night had well and truly fallen and Kraine had had enough of the idle attempts of small talk both he and Dirk had attempted, he called Gesea downstairs to take her home. As they left, he heard her whisper softly to Colloyd that she would convince him to let her come along and that she would see him tomorrow. He dreaded the moment they got home and he had to firmly explain that it was not a choice. Gesea would not take it lightly and he would likely have to tell her more about the journey ahead than he might have wanted. If push came to shove though, he would have no choice.

xxx

Colloyd was awoken later that night by the sound of a girl screaming. He rushed out to the balcony and looked down to see his pet looking up at him with concerned eyes.

"What was that Noishe?" he asked quietly. Noishe looked to the woods and let out a high pitched whine.

"Get away!" yelled a familiar voice over the night air.

Through a clearing of trees close to the woods ran a little pink haired figure. Several slinkier and darker shapes surrounded it. This was all Colloyd needed to switch into action mode. Taking a split second to grab his chakram and sword, he headed back outside and took a leap off of his balcony to land on a flower bed beneath. He ran for his best friend, throwing the bladed ring in his left hand at the closest wolf to her. It connected easily, leaving a deep wound before flying back to his hand.

The wolves turned their attention from the little elf to him. He cut the first one that pounced at him down with no problem, and then a smaller, mangier one that had tried to come at him from the side. He heard a shriek from Gesea, followed by a warmth from behind his back. He turned to see the wolf he had taken his eyes off accidentally burning to ashes before disappearing in the usual flash monsters did. He gaped for a moment before trailing his eyes up to Gesea, breathing heavily and with a strange object in her hands. It looked like an axe connected to a rope and paddle.

"Gesea?" He asked, trying to disguise the shock in his voice. "Wow! When did you learn to use magic like that!?"

"I..I.." Gesea said softly.

Colloyd tilted his head. "I always wondered if elves could use magic. Guess I got my answer huh!" He looked pointedly down at her weapon. "Ooh, let's see your weapon!"

"Col!" Gesea exclaimed. Colloyd took a step back from her. She clenched her fists and looked at him worriedly.

"Aren't you going to ask me what I was doing here late at night?"

"Oh yeah, that," Colloyd laughed. He gave her what he hoped was a stern Kraine-like face. "Gesea, it is dangerous out here. You could get hurt very easily. Just what made you come here so late?"

Gesea forced a smile and glanced away. "I...was going to see a friend and have a picnic with her."

"At one in the morning?" Colloyd gaped, looking over to where Gesea had glanced to. There was a package wrapped in foil on the ground. The moonlight from above made it appear an almost magical sparkle of blue instead of metallic silver. "A picnic with my dog maybe?"

"Noishe?" Gesea made a funny noise. "Col, my friend is a _human!"_

"What's a human doing in the woods at-" Colloyd trailed off and gaped at her. "You don't mean-"

"She never gets enough to eat at the ranch so I try to bring her some food. Usually I do it during the day but with everything that happened today, I didn't get a chance."

Colloyd stood still in thought for a few moments before giving himself a nod when he had figured it out. "Alright then. Since you're only going to get hurt trying to take the food through the woods at this time of night, I'll have to go with you."

"Really?" Gesea's face brightened up.

"Really!" he nodded. "Let's try to be quick though. If anyone sees us there, we'll be in big trouble."

"I understand," Gesea nodded. "Let's go."

xxx

The tall brunette and pink-haired shorty made their way cautiously through Iselia forest, prepared for any further attacks. They took an eastern path toward the human ranch run by the Desians. Iselia had long ago made a non-aggression treaty with them. Basically as long as nobody interfered or entered the ranch, Iselia would be safe from any attacks.

As they approached the big military-style building, the knot that had been forming in Colloyd's gut had been twisting even further. He remembered the teacher before Kraine and Gesea had come to the village telling him about the Desian ranches and that they were dangerous places where things happened that no person should bear witness to. Yet here he was, allowing his best friend to do something which could very well endanger an entire village if they were caught. Of course, his feelings overrode the logic as always as well as his partial curiosity toward the unknown.

"Marble!" Gesea whispered harshly as they made their way to the left hand side of the base and toward a barred gate. There was a low groan before a hunched figure strode toward them from around the corner of a large wooden box. "Gesea.. is that you?"

"It's me. I also brought Col with me tonight." Gesea grinned up at Colloyd as she handed Marble the food wrapped in foil and dropped to her knees. Marble did the same and Colloyd followed, nervously glancing back and forth.

"So this is your friend," Marble smiled, all the lines across her face following the countour of her lips. Colloyd smiled in greeting and tried to ignore how frail the old woman looked. As he watched her open the package and take out a sandwich, he noticed something he couldn't take his eyes off.

"Marble, did you see it? There was an oracle today!" Gesea whispered excitedly to the old lady.

"Yes I did. I saw the Tower of Salvation." She looked at Colloyd for just long enough for him to know that Gesea had spilled his secret identity as the Chosen to someone outside of the village.

"Sorry Col," Gesea whispered. "Marble won't tell anyone."

He shrugged and turned his attention back to the gem in Marbles hand. "…Hey grams—"

"Her name is Marble," Gesea explained patiently.

Colloyd quickly apologised and continued. "Marble. Isn't that an Exsphere?"

"Oh, is that what this is called?" she asked. "They placed it on me shortly after I came here."

"Yeah, that's definitely an Exsphere. But there's no Key Crest on it. An Exsphere without a Key Crest is dangerous." He touched his hand for a minute.

Gesea looked down at the Exsphere on the top of his knuckles. "You're right. You have that thing around yours."

"Right," he nodded. "Attaching an Exsphere directly to your skin supposedly makes you sick. But ironically, it's useless unless you attach it directly onto the skin. So in order to prevent it from making you sick, you carve a spell into a special ore and use that as a mount for the Exsphere. That's the Key Crest."

Marble raised her eyebrows. "You're very knowledgeable. Gesea tells me you were raised by a dwarf, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised."

"What's going to happen to Marble without her having a Key Crest?" Gesea asked, concern sounding in her voice. "Can you make one for her, Col?"

"If the charm was the only thing needed, I could carve one myself, but there's nothing I can do without the inhibitor ore that acts as the mount. Key Crests are dwarven technology." He regretted saying the last bit of his sentence slightly when Gesea got a pleading look in her eyes. "Please ask Dirk for help, Col!"

Col paused and took a deep breath. "Fine..fine.."

Gesea grinned. "That is why I like you, Col. You are a kind person."

"Hey, old hag! What the hell you doin' over there?" came a sharp male voice, making them all jump. The little old lady was suddenly dragged upward by the collar of her beige robes into a standing position by a typical helmet-wearing Desian. "Aha! So you _have _been eating!" He looked at the two children behind the gate, startled.

"We have to run!" Colloyd exclaimed.

"Sorry Marble.." Gesea cried as she took off with him away from the ranch.

The Desian holding marble held his hand to his mouth. "Alert Lord Forcystus at once to replay video footage. We have caught the two responsible for feeding one of our host subjects." He appeared to hang up on whoever he had been radioing and looked back at Marble. "Your little friends are going to pay dearly for their treason."

She spat in his face in disgust.

xxx

"Do you-" Gesea panted, "-think they saw our faces?"

"Nah," Colloyd shrugged and looked behind himself. "We shouldn't linger here. Are you going to be okay going back by yourself?"

Gesea nodded. "I'm sorry for the trouble Col."

"Don't worry about it," he smiled. "Marble seems really nice." He bid farewell to her and turned away before she could see the worry etched onto his face. He headed back home quickly and climbed his way up to his balcony and open bedroom door, to fall into bed with a light snore until morning came.


	4. Ignorance is knowledge

**A/N:** Hello readers of my fan fiction! If you're reading this, hopefully I've kept your interests long enough. I can only hope that you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! As always, if you're enjoying it and or have any thoughts on it, please click the shiny review button and let me know. Reading reviews makes me want to write more a lot faster and lends inspiration too!

**Disclaimer:** Well you know the drill by now, from this and the gazillion other fanfics you've _probably _read. I don't own Tales of Symphonia. I do to some degree own the plot of this story though in some areas more than others.

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**Chapter 4 **

**Ignorance is knowledge**

* * *

"He'll be down in a minute."

Colloyd stirred from his uncomfortable slumber at the sound of his Dad's voice a bit louder than normal.

"Would you be opposed to myself adjusting his bed time routine?" came the voice of the Professor. His dad let out a laugh. "If ya can get my boy up at the crack of dawn, maybe I should take parenting lessons from you in the future!"

Colloyd rolled his eyes. Travelling with the Professor was already sounding like a barrel of laughs. He couldn't hear Gesea's voice downstairs and his stomach sank. He had known she wouldn't convince him but a small part of him had still hoped. He thought back to their previous night and to Marble. He had to talk to his dad about making a Key Crest. When he was done he could always just go to the village and give it to Gesea to give to Marble on her next visit. With the Professor downstairs though he would never be able to get away with asking and not getting a double lecture. He didn't want to get Gesea in trouble either. Sighing, he pulled out a strip of parchment from his small bedside drawer and grabbed a finely sharpened pencil from the pencil jar nearby. He set to work in scrawling a detailed note, filled with at least half a dozen apologies.

xxx

Kraine examined the boy as he walked down stairs to greet them, dressed in his favourite red outfit, complete with the thin white scarf that often caught the breeze.

"What?" Colloyd asked, noticing his stare.

He glanced away and blinked. "Sorry. I was just thinking about how you really don't look like a Chosen."

"Really? What does a Chosen look like?" When Kraine cleared his throat to begin he cut him off. "Actually, maybe we should save the conversation for when I'm bored out of my mind." He discreetly placed the letter to his dad on the kitchen bench behind him. "Is Gesea coming?"

"I'm surprised you need to ask," the Professor said, frowning. "She didn't seem as upset about not coming with us this morning though."

Colloyd thought back to the ranch. That _had_ to be why. Of course she wanted to stay and give Marble the Key Crest his dad would make for her. She was such a mature kid sometimes, always seeming wiser than her twelve years and short stature would normally have suggested. She _was_ a prodigy though. He glanced at the Professor as they said their final goodbyes to his dad and wondered whether intelligence was common among elves. Even more curiously, he wondered whether magic was a given gift.

The first half of the day passed slowly as they made their way through the lush valley and away from the only life Colloyd had known for fourteen years. Kraine kept stopping and taking a red coloured book from his cloak with a pen connected to a string. He would write what looked like a few words, nod to himself and put it away before continuing on ahead and telling him not to dawdle. He tried to be patient and not let it grate on his nerves, thinking to make the most of the scenery before they reached the desert. The Professor had said he wanted to make it to the desert town of Triet by nightfall. As the dual swordsman looked off into the distance, it was hard to believe the climate could change so drastically and that a desert was less than a days travel away.

When they reached a quiet little hamlet known to most as the Iselia House of Salvation, Colloyd couldn't help his surprise when the Professor actually formed a whole sentence toward him that wasn't a barked order.

"Colloyd, do you think you have the strength to complete this journey?"

Colloyd crossed his arms. "I must and I will, for the sake of the world."

"The last chosen failed on her journey. Does that worry you?"

Though Colloyd shook his head, Kraine saw the truth in his eyes. He sighed and paced back and forth in front of him as the boy took a break on the steps. Colloyd tilted his head. "What's on your mind Professor? You don't need to be worried about me. I learned a lot about being a chosen all through my childhood." He had a wistful expression on his face. "Professor Ka-Fei taught me a lot about my journey as the Chosen. He told me that there wouldn't be anything to worry about and that meeting with Origin would save the world."

"He did, did he?"

"_Professor,_" Colloyd laughed a bit. "You always sound a bit jealous when I mention him."

"Absurd," Kraine answered, stiffening his back and stopping to glare at him. "I dislike that he did not educate you with all the facts. You will meet with Origin when you ascend to heaven. Do you not realise what exactly ascending to heaven means?"

"Of course I do," Colloyd answered, a bit softer this time. "One life for the happiness of the world is a small price to pay of course. It is my duty as the Chosen and as the son of an angel."

Kraine didn't answer and averted his glare elsewhere.

"But Professor Ka-Fei also said something to me right before he left Iselia," Colloyd said, his face brightening up again. Kraine gazed at him and for a moment, the glare from before gone and a concerned frown gracing his features. He continued. "He said that while the Chosen within me may not be able to avoid destiny, the other side of me can certainly try and will most likely succeed. I think he meant that I'm not _just _the Chosen. I'm also me."

"Your older _Professor _seems to be quite the eccentric one," Kraine replied, walking away from him. "Come. We've wasted enough time dawdling here."

xxx

"Man it's _sooooo_ hot," Colloyd complained with an exasperated sigh and a pant. He glanced at Kraine, who didn't look bothered at all by the extreme heat. "Let me guess. You travelled through here before and you're used to it?"

"Not at all," Kraine replied. "But compared to how fascinating the thought that all of this heat is the doing of Efreet from the ruin of the old town of Triet just to the northeast of here, this actual heat is nothing."

"Uh.. So what you're saying is basically ignorance is bliss?"

"Not quite," Kraine responded. "Ignorance is knowledge is what I am saying."

"That doesn't sound like a very good life lesson."

"Isn't it?" Kraine raised his eyebrows. "Being ignorant to knowledge that is fed to you from your enemies can sometimes give you the upperhand. If they don't believe you are wise to their motives, they are more likely to give you hints of their plans."

"But how would I know that I am learning more if I am ignorant?" he questioned.

Kraine heaved a sigh. "Nevermind. Keep your eyes on your footing. I can see Triet up ahead."

xxx

It was only a couple of hours later that they finally set foot in the desert oasis of Triet. As soon as he could, Colloyd darted for the shade of the nearby travelers lodge and heaved a happy sigh. He waved to Kraine to join him but noticed that he was distracted by a small market stall of old looking trinkets. A strange grin came to his face as he picked up one that looked like a replica of a temple and despite his relief from the desert sun, he sauntered over to take a closer look. The Professor didn't take much notice of him though and he quickly got bored and headed over to a shop that sold various armour and weapons.

He saw a green chakram hanging up next to a sword and felt a bit disappointed. He hadn't left home with all that much and what little money he and Kraine had together would need to be spent on food and gels.

The shopkeeper saw him before he could back away and leaned over the counter to him. "Can I give you a hand at all?"

"No, no, I'm just looking thanks." He stepped away but the shop keeper had a disturbing twinkle in his eyes and made his way around the stall, holding his hand out to him. "What were you looking at young man? I see you are a swordsman."

"Dual wielder, actually," he corrected accidentally and instantly regretted it. He shook his head and took another step back. "I'll be going no-whoah!" He lost his footing and fell backward and straight through a thinly wooden planked hut of another merchant. There was a commotion all around him suddenly and he found himself being pulled out of the rubble by Kraine.

"Are you alright, Chosen?" he asked. Fits of whispers erupted and it seemed everyone in the near vicinity had heard. Colloyd glared at Kraine. He would have thought the Professor of all people would know how important it was for the Chosen to keep a low profile. They walked away without anyone asking for their names or details to repay the damage. With a smirk, he realised why Kraine had so carelessly let his identity slip. They wouldn't be able to eat if they had to repay anything. His stomach let out a growl as though giving away his thoughts and he went red. Kraine placed one hand on his back and pushed him forward through the town until he stopped dawdling.

They found a food stall just past a small lake of clear blue water. Just as Colloyd was examining the various items available, he heard a loud howl from behind. He turned around and sidestepped just in time to watch a familiar green and white haired dog tackle the Professor to the ground; sending a billow of sand flying up into the air that showered back down onto the fruits and vegetables nearby. Luckily the shop owner didn't seem too concerned and altogether seemed more curious about the huge creature that was currently still licking Kraine's face. "What _is _that?"

"Oh he's Noishe. My dog." Colloyd pulled him off of the teacher-swordsman and offered his hand. Kraine rolled his eyes and simply sat up to look at Noishe. The dog whined and backed away before Kraine offered his hand out. Noishe gave a happier whine and nudged it lovingly. "It is good to see you again Noishe," Kraine said. Seeing Colloyd's confused expression, he sighed and got himself up off the sandy ground. "I once had a pet, long ago. Noishe reminds me of him."

"Ah!" Colloyd looked at Noishe and tilted his head. "Wait, what's that in your collar?" He reached for the dog and looked closer at the leather collar he wore. A wooden figurine was sheathed inside it. When he pulled it out to take a closer look, he dropped it in surprise.

Kraine stared at it too, the colour draining from his face. "That is the present you gave Gesea. She wouldn't let it out of her sight for a second last night."

"But what's it doing here?" Colloyd asked, looking Noishe in the eyes again. The dog let out a whine and started running in the other direction toward the exit of the city. The Chosen and Professor-Mercenary quickly gave chase, waving behind themselves to the dazzled food vendor who had witnessed the whole scenario.

Noishe didn't stop running, but occasionally looked behind himself while in mid-stride to make sure they were still following. Neither man said a word to one another, concentrating on keeping up with the dog and their own footing on the dunes of the Triet desert. Eventually they stopped outside a grey-blue facility in the shape of a dome and stared; each of their fears being realised. Colloyd could only think about the night before at the Iselia ranch. There was no mistaking the outfits of the two guards who stood just ahead of them. Desians. He looked at Kraine, who nodded. They needed to get in and rescue Gesea.

xxx

"Gesea?" Colloyd called softly when he and Kraine entered the base after taking care of the guards swiftly. So far there had been no alarm and he guessed that they hadn't been expecting intruders. He looked back at Kraine, who was peering around a corner. "Should we split up?"

At first the Professor looked hesitant before nodding. "We will cover more ground that way."

"Right." Colloyd went to run off when he heard his name being called. He turned to the Professor who gave him a nod. "Don't die, alright Colloyd?"

"Don't worry, I won't." He turned away and ran in the opposite direction to him.

When Colloyd got to a new hallway, he stopped and hid to scope out the new area. A couple of Desians walked back and forth but weren't looking altogether alert. One Desian stopped at a cell among a row of them a short way down the hall and said something.

"You're not going to keep me in here for long you know. You Desians will pay for what you did to Iselia!" There was no doubt about who was in that cell, Colloyd knew.

"Oh shut up," the Desian said in response, before looking back at one of his co-workers. "Has Botta given us any indication yet as to why we need this little girl?"

The other Desian shrugged. "I think he's waiting for instructions from the higher up as well."

Colloyd rolled his eyes and waited patiently for the two Desians to disappear around the corner to run to Gesea. Her face lit up at the sight of him for a moment before a disturbed look crossed her eyes. Colloyd didn't have time to wonder what it was about and set to work on the cell door lock which kept her from leaving. He pulled out a small wood shaving knife and stuck it in the hole, fiddling around. Nothing seemed to be happening though. He looked at her desperately and she shook her head. "It's alright Col. I could have gotten out a lot sooner but I wouldn't have been able to escape on my own."  
She stepped up to the bars on Colloyd's left and put her hands to them. He watched, stunned, as she bent them out of shape into a gap big enough for her to step through. Avoiding his gaze as she casually stepped out, she took hold of his hand, started running in the opposite direction the Desians would be coming from and right through a metal door that whooshed open as they got close enough.

"That was close!" Gesea said, catching her breath. Too much longer and they would have seen her escape.

"I know," Colloyd said as he grinned at her.

She looked away. "I can't tell you about it right now alright? We have to focus on getting out of here."

"I know, I know..."

They looked around the big square room they had entered and had enough time to see some strange floating metal devices roaming the floor around them. Just as they were wondering what they were and whether they could avoid a fight with them, an alarm blared overhead and a voice filled the room. "SECURITY BREACH, SECURITY BREACH! INTRUDER ALERT."

"Do you think it's talking about us?" Colloyd asked Gesea, who slapped her face and led him to a gap in the middle of a room next to a weird ringed device that shone in the middle. Colloyd thought he could hear a faint electrical buzzing sound coming from it. He and Gesea had hid in the little hole and listened to the sound of footsteps coming to the room. The door they had entered from before whooshed open again and two Desian soldiers stepped in.

"They must have gone in further," one said as they circled the room. They heard a buzzing sound nearby and then another whoosh. The footsteps disappeared upon yet another whoosh as it appeared another door closed behind them.

When the two friends thought it was safe, they clambered out of the hole and examined their surroundings. The metal looking floating things that had previously been scouting the room now stood above two blue glowing platforms in the floor, buzzing as though they had been zapped with electricity. From the glowing platforms, a line emerged and joined together to lead to a door on the far left side of the room. The door was also lit up like a blue chrismartel tree. They looked at one another and nodded silently before heading for it. The door opened and led them into another hallway. This time it branched off into a northern hallway and a western hallway. Just as they stepped into it and looked both ways, they heard yelling. They had no choice but to dart into the first door they saw.

xxx

The room they now stood in was quite different from all the rest. It was carpeted for one and felt more like a house than a room in a Desian base.

"And just who the hell are you?"

Colloyd and Gesea whirled around to face a woman. She had striking electric blue hair, eyes just a shade lighter than a lime, a black and red cape that covered her shoulders, and armour that looked somewhat similar to that the Desians wore but of the same green shade as her eyes. Currently the blue haired bombshell didn't look very impressed to see them. Neither were either of them to see her though, to be fair.

"If you ask for our names, you should give us yours first," Colloyd responded. Gesea wanted to slap her face at his politeness, knowing that he had probably meant to make it a demand rather than a question.

The woman smiled before falling into a little giggle. "Well I can't say you don't have guts!" She frowned and looked him over again, her eyes expressing surprise when they fell on Colloyd's ex sphere. "Wait. Could it be? Are you by any chance.. Colloyd?"

"And if I am?" Colloyd asked, seeming to finally get the hang of the tone he should be using.

The woman grinned as she looked him over again. "I _see_." She looked to the door behind them. As though she had known, it whooshed open and and a familiar elven looking man with a pointed face and spiky black hair filed into the room. He looked at Colloyd and Gesea, before looking at the woman. "My lady, Kraine is on his way to rescue the Chosen and his companion right this moment."

"He is, is he.." The woman put her hand to her chin in thought before nodding to herself and completely ignoring the battle stance that Colloyd had taken. "I suppose it wouldn't do to let him of all people see me yet. I'll leave the rest in your hands, Botta." She looked at Colloyd and he almost shivered at her stony gaze. "Don't forget about me Chosen. Next time we meet, you're mine." With a swish of her cape she left through another door on the left side of the room.

Colloyd looked at the elven man named Botta. "Just what do you plan to do with us?"

Botta didn't get a chance to reply because the door behind Colloyd and Gesea whooshed again, letting the Professor into the room. As he stepped in, they saw Desians clutching wounds behind him, sprawled in agony on the floor. Colloyd grinned. The Professor sure did know how to make an epic entrance.

Kraine looked at Gesea and then at Colloyd. "Are the two of you alright?" They nodded and turned to Botta. "It's you," he said, looking at Kraine.

"It seems that way," Kraine replied, tilting his head. "And you are?"

"It doesn't matter. I'll take care of you all right now!"

"Ready yourselves for battle," Kraine said to Colloyd and Gesea. They nodded, though Gesea looked a bit hesitant as she clapped her hands and made her axe on a stick appear as if out of thin air.

"And we _will_ talk about this later," Kraine added quickly, readying his own blade as Botta charged at them. He ran at Botta a second later and met his blade. He overpowered the elf ..just.. and sent him stepping back to try and regain his balance before he was assaulted again. Colloyd charged ahead of Kraine, throwing the spinning chakram in his left hand at him and leaving a gash on his shoulder. While Botta stood, a bit surprised, he swiped at his sword. The elf was quicker than the Desians they had fought off earlier however and easily blocked the head on attack and pushed Colloyd backward with a brute force.

Colloyd fell to the floor and Kraine quickly fell back to aid him before he was left vulnerable, letting Gesea who had been casting a spell the entire time release three molten hot fireballs at him. Botta appeared to be experienced in the magic department though because he threw up a ball of green light around himself before charging straight for Gesea. Kraine met the parry before he even got close, matching his strength with him once again. It seemed that way anyway until they all heard a loud crack and watched as the bright blood red sword Botta had been fighting with cracked right down the middle and shattered to the floor. Taking Botta's surprise to his advantage, Colloyd ran in and slashed his sword at the mans armour, making the leather fall apart and to the floor.

Seeing his destiny apparently flash before his eyes if he kept up his assault to the three of them, Botta jumped back and looked at all of them. "Alright. It seems I underestimated your abilities." He dropped his sword to the floor, pressed a button on the wall behind him and retreated.

"Quick, I've activated the escape route," Kraine said as he picked up the broken weapon Botta had dropped and turned on his heel to head for the door he had entered from. "We must get out of here."

Neither dual wielder nor super strengthened magician argued with his point and followed him as he led them out of the base through an unguarded location and out to where Noishe was waiting patiently.

* * *

**A/N: Since you're at the end of the page already, flick me a review if you feel like it. ^.^**


	5. Dungeon runs and a mimic that couldn't

**A/N:** Hi everyone! Here's yet another update for Skewed Destinies!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Tales of Symphonia, its original characters, plot, or locations.

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Dungeon runs and a mimic that couldn't**

* * *

Colloyd sat with Kraine and Gesea in the room they had rented in the travelers lodge in Triet as she broke the news to them. He clenched his fists against his knees as he struggled to keep his composure. The news that _they _had been the cause of what happened was still on the tip of Gesea's tongue. He decided to take matters into his own hands as he looked at the Professor. He hadn't said a word yet which only made him more nervous.

"It's my fault," he said to Kraine. "I had a friend at the ranch and wanted to go and see her. Gesea came along with me and someone must have seen us."

Kraine waited to make sure he said nothing else before setting the mug of coffee he had been sipping down on a small drawer next to his bed and giving him quite a serious look. "I'm not very well learned on the dwarven vows, but I do know one in particular that applies here. I believe it is number eleven?"

Colloyd made a sound and muttered "lying is the first step down the path of thievery." He gave Kraine a guilty look. "You knew I was lying?"

Kraine shrugged and looked at Gesea. "I had noticed a lack of food in our fridge recently and assumed you were hiding a pet dog from me. I hadn't thought you were friends with one of the test subjects at the ranch."

"I couldn't tell you," Gesea said softly. "I was the only person that understood Marble.." She cringed and looked to be remembering something as she reached into the pocket of her dress. Colloyd immediately recognised it as an ex-sphere and pushed her to explain how she had gotten it. Gesea's eyes welled with tears though and she ran out of the room, leaving Kraine and Colloyd to glance at one another in a silent battle of who should deal with it. Eventually Colloyd admitted defeat and left the bedroom to find his best friend.

Gesea was outside of the lodge, sitting next to Noishe who curled around her and rested his head in her lap. Noishe had always been particularly sensitive to emotions and seemed to sense when anyone was distressed. The elven girl looked up and gave a fake smile. He sighed and sat down next to her, petting Noishe on the muzzle. "What's the matter Gesea? How do you have an ex-sphere?"

"It's... it's too horrible!" she squeaked and started to cry again. "Marble.. she.." Without her having to finish the sentence, Colloyd knew what she had meant to say. "She turned into a monster and I.. I killed her! She was going to kill me. I didn't know it was her but then Forcystus was there and-" "-Okay," Colloyd breathed as he grabbed her by the shoulders. "You need to start from the beginning."

xxx

The sun had set well and truly by the time they re-entered the lodge room where Kraine had been patiently waiting. Gesea told him what had happened; that their visit to the ranch had promoted the leader of the Desians, a half-elf named Forcystus to attack the village. Something had happened to Marble and she had become a monster. He and Gesea had uncomfortably decided that it had been due to her ex-sphere lacking a Key Crest and that they had not been quick enough in getting one to her. Kraine didn't ask any questions. It was almost as though he had understood what had happened.

"You should get to bed. We have a full day ahead of us tomorrow," he said as the conversation came to an end.

"You mean you'll let Gesea come along?" Colloyd asked.

Kraine grimaced and glanced at his sister. "I'm sure she intended on joining us eventually whether or not she were invited. She is no longer welcome at Iselia so it is my duty to look after her."

Gesea jumped her brother into an embrace and he held her close for a couple of moments before straightening her and giving her a look to tell her to follow his earlier instructions. She nodded and headed for the bathroom, leaving Colloyd alone with Kraine.

The teacher looked at him. "Colloyd."

"Wh..what?"

Kraine gave him a concerned look. "It is human nature to blame yourself for the actions of others. Humans are quite helpless in that aspect."

"Iselia was partly my fault," Colloyd replied. "I hope they will be able to forgive me after I have regenerated the world."

"I imagine they would have little choice in the matter."

Colloyd nodded and rested back on his bed spread. "Professor, can I ask you something?"

"That depends on what it is."

"Do you think people will miss me when I am gone?"

"You have people that care about you. Of course they will." Kraine's voice went softer as he spoke and he quickly decided to make an exit before Colloyd could ask him the next question that was practically hanging in the air between them. "If you'll excuse me, I need some fresh air."

Colloyd nodded and closed his eyes. Kraine watched him shift and get more comfortable before turning to the door of their room and heading out into the common room of the lodge. His walked past the travelers who lounged around reading books or talking to others and exited.

Standing outside next to Noishe, Kraine allowed himself to travel into his own mind. There were so many different things to think about. He had made the journey to Iselia long ago and known that this journey would come eventually. Becoming a teacher for the Chosen had been no easy task. He crossed his arms and wondered to himself how he had managed to get himself involved in what was clearly a lose-lose scenario. The Chosen was a means to a necessary end. They needed to regenerate the world. People were suffering more and more everyday, and a lack of mana in the air meant that people were more prone to sickness and that there were not enough resources for the appropriate medicine to be able to be financially available to the common folk. There was only one problem with the 'means to the end'.

**It was Colloyd.**

Kraine sighed and closed his eyes, pondering what to do. He very much doubted he would be able to get any sleep while his mind was in such a state of turmoil.

xxx

The group of three plus one Noishe set off the next morning toward the Triet ruins. While Gesea and Colloyd still seemed quite distressed about the previous day, Kraine couldn't help but be the chipper one in the party. After all, they were going to be seeing a piece of history very soon. It had been quite a while since he had visited last and he found it was always somewhat of an intrigue to see how things endured the test of time.

"Hey Gesea," Colloyd asked after a while, boredom getting the best of him. Gesea looked up from her previous sullen stare at her walking feet. Colloyd grinned at her. "Tell me more about the magic and the super strength already!"

Kraine visibly flinched and looked at Gesea, brief disbelief playing across his face. Gesea looked at Kraine. "Sorry. I know you said never show anyone but.."

"I'm sure you had a good reason," Kraine replied with a heavy sigh. "I suppose it _is _time to tell the Chosen the truth." The unsaid part of his resolve in his mind made him uncomfortable again, especially when Colloyd got an excited glint in his eyes and bombarded Gesea with a million and one questions.

"I get the strength from my ex-sphere, just like you do," Gesea explained. She stopped briefly to unbutton the top of her dress to show the top part of her chest. On there sat a red crystal, surrounded by a Key Crest. Colloyd went to take a closer look but stopped at seeing Kraine's brotherly glare on him. His face went red and he glanced away. Gesea tilted her head in question as she buttoned her dress back up. "My ex-sphere is different though. I'm not sure of the details but it was a part of an experiment called the Angelus pro-"

"Gesea," Kraine said abruptly. "This is not a subject to bother the Chosen with."

"Oh, right.." Gesea looked sad and gave Colloyd an apologetic look. "It's a bit of a sensitive topic for us. I apologise."

"I don't mind being bothered," Colloyd said. "You can tell me."

Gesea glanced back at Kraine who frowned at her and decided to speak. "The Angelus project is a Desian-funded project based on turning ex-spheres into something different. Their goal was to turn an ex-sphere into a Cruxis Crystal, just like the one the Chosen is born with."

"Like mine?"

"Exactly," Gesea said. "Myself and our sister were both a part of the experiment."

"Your sister?" Colloyd's eyes widened as he looked back and forth at the siblings. "Where is she?"

Neither sibling said a word more, which only made Colloyd all the more curious. Before he had a chance to learn more though, Kraine let out a loud, uncharacteristic laugh and ran ahead of them. Colloyd and Gesea exchanged looks and followed him to the entrance of the Triet ruins.

xxx

"Just look at this stone," Kraine said to them as he turned to them, a strange and somewhat scary look on his face. "Have you ever seen anything quite like it?" He ran his gloved hand over the panels that decorated the entrance and stopped on a groove, letting out what Colloyd could only describe as an excited sigh.

"Professor?" Colloyd asked, raising one eyebrow. The auburn haired teacher-swordsman didn't answer and appeared to be muttering to himself as he examined the areas around a stone tablet with a magnifying glass that he had seemingly kept in his cloak pocket the entire time.

Colloyd looked to his best friend for an answer and was met with a heavy sigh and an embarrassed drop of the shoulders.

"I tried so hard to conceal it too. Kraine's somewhat of an Archaeological Maniac."

"Don't give it a name like that," Kraine said, appearing to only have selective hearing and glowering at his sister. "I am simply fascinated by things like this."

"Why? It's just st-" Colloyd found Gesea's hand flying to his mouth to shut him up. She shook her head with a scared look in her eyes. Both children looked to the teacher and watched as he found a stone tablet in the middle of the entrance to the ruins. "Wait, this is it! Come here Chosen."

Colloyd reluctantly stepped closer to the Professor, still freaked out by the look in his eyes. The Professor looked from the stone tablet to him and then back again, running his fingers along the edges of it. "This is definitely the first seal."

"_That's _what a seal looks like?" Colloyd asked, staring at the stone. "I thought it was some kind of marine animal that opened up paths when you spoke to it."

There was silence for a moment and all that could be heard was the whistle of the wind and the distant rustle of a tumble weed.

"Place your hand here," Kraine instructed him eventually. Colloyd did as he said and placed his hand atop a small groove in the stone. It rumbled under his palm for a moment and a passage just ahead of them opened up.

"Guess I really am the Chosen after all, huh," he said to his companions, deciding to be brave and heading down the staircase that had revealed itself to them.

"I believe we know that already, Col!" Gesea giggled as she followed after him. Kraine followed soon after, nodding to himself. "Yes, it appears that you are." He looked behind himself at Noishe, who whined and sat at the entrance.

xxx

"Is it really meant to be _this _easy?" Gesea asked Colloyd and Kraine. The two fighters just glanced at one another, equally dumbfounded. The moment they had entered the metaphorical sauna, things had gone a little strangely. Their first hint that something wasn't quite right was when they had discovered a winged bird-like monster on the ground, a breath away from death. Colloyd had put it out of its misery but it had clearly been an enemy that would have ambushed them. When the path forked up ahead, they had taken the left, slightly curved path to discover yet another monster squirming for life on the ash coloured bricked ground. Again Colloyd put it out of its misery. It was only when they found a dead end and entered a door to their right to find another monster on deaths doorstep that they all stopped to reflect.

"It appears that the platforms here were raised recently by these torches being set alight." Kraine said as he stalked past them and examined one of the alcoves in the pillar nearby. A bright red flame danced about inside. High above them a platform was raised out of a pool of lava. They could see a staircase which must have been a part of one of the other entrances to the large room they were in which led up to it.

"I think I've figured it out," Colloyd stated then. Everyone turned to him while he grimaced and scratched his chin in thought. "Someone must have come in here before us. I'd say treasure hunters."

"_Col, _that isn't possible," Gesea answered, quickly putting a stop to the Chosens words.

Colloyd looked at her. "Why not?"

"Perhaps you should use your own head a little," Kraine responded. "If anyone could open up a seal then why do they not send fighters or hardened criminals to do the task of the Chosen?"

"Oh." Colloyd gave an embarrassed laugh. "Right. _I _had to open it." He gestured to the room around him. "Do either of you have a better idea?"

"I don't think it is necessary to know right now," Kraine replied. "Although I'm extremely curious, we should perhaps use this turn of events to our advantage instead." He walked past them and stood at the door, waving for them to leave the room.

"And you said this wasn't a field trip!" Colloyd joked to Kraine as they wound their way around the outer fringe of the inside circular building. They found another door they could enter a short way around which led into the middle of the larger room. They entered and followed the stairway they had seen in the previous entrance to the room, to see that it branched off into several other platforms which contained treasure chests. Despite his companions saying so, Colloyd had still been partly wondering at the prospect of treasure hunters until he saw that they had not looted anything. Sitting in the chest was a pair of swords, one of which he took for himself and handed the other to Kraine. The Professor looked at it, a strange frown on his face before he handed it back to Colloyd. "It won't do me any good to use a sword like that. See the thin blade? The two blades in this chest are clearly meant to go together."

"_Two _blades?" Colloyd raised one eyebrow. "But then you might as well use a shield since you'll spend half your time defending with one of them anyway."

"What happened to your theory of being a dual wielder?" Kraine asked, a slight smirk in his voice.

"That's different," the boy snapped before dropping his backpack and placing them inside. They might not be any good but he could at least sell them. Zipping his backpack back up and slinging it over his shoulder, he walked over another raised platform to a treasure chest. It looked different from the previous one he had just opened somehow, having a mahogany sheen to it that made the red glow from the lava beneath them reflect off of it. "Stop!" yelled the Professor all of a sudden, making Colloyd stop mid-step toward it. The Professor stepped in front of him and pulled his sword from its sheath. "This is a mimic. A devils box."

"What's that?"

"Don't you pay _any _attention in class, Col?" Gesea asked, stepping up beside her brother. She looked at it with her head tilted. "Kraine, you can relax. It's _dead."_

Kraine relaxed his sword hand and looked at the monster treasure chest a little more closely this time. A small hairline crack ran right down the middle of it. Reaching forward with his sword, he tapped the mimic slightly. Colloyd and Gesea jumped back as the chest crumbled under the slight touch and fell apart in both directions sideways. Kraine hesitantly put his sword back in its sheath and turned to the last platform at the top of the path. A round glowing teleportation ring sat there, just waiting for them to enter. Giving the two children behind him a warning about how strange they might feel for a moment or two, he stepped in and watched them step in behind him a moment later.

Colloyd blinked his eyes a few times when the strange floating sensation stopped. He had to blink again quickly when he saw what stood in front of them. There, a bright red and orange dinosaur like creature on four legs with spikes that protruded from the tip of its head to the end of its tail stood; two smaller versions of the same creature by its side.

"Get ready!" Kraine said, clutching his sword. Colloyd watched as a bright white aura surrounded him for a moment before he yelled"Guardian!" and a green light surrounded the three of them.

The dinosaur creature roared and sent a large ball of flame from out of its mouth at them but with the green forcefield Kraine had conjured up with his elven magic, it spread in a wide arc around them and scorched the wall behind them instead. The barrier faded and the three of them sprung into action. Kraine got to the large dinosaur first while Colloyd charged with his chakram spinning toward the smaller one on the left hand side. Gesea clapped her hands together, summoned her weapon, and started casting some kind of spell that caused her aura to glow blue and a round star shaped symbol in a circle to appear at her feet. There was only one weird problem though.  
_Their enemy wasn't moving._

Kraine attacked the large beast and without much of an argument, it was sent to the floor of the ruins with a loud crash, knocking down one of the smaller dinosaurs during the fall. It shook for a few seconds as it tried to get up but let out what sounded more like a whine rather than a roar and rested its head back on the ground. The other smaller creature that had still been standing had been knocked out by the jets of water from Gesea as she yelled the words "Aqua Edge!"

With the enemies wasted, Colloyd stopped spinning his chakram. "Aw man, I didn't get to do anything!" He looked at Kraine who had a dumbfounded expression on his face as he leaned down to the fallen large dinosaur corpse and examined a large gash in its side. "I think it is safe to say that my sister and I did not do much either."

"Do you think it was the same people that have been killing the monsters all the way through here?"

"That isn't important right now," Kraine said as he looked toward the altar right at the back of the circular room that they had transported into. Colloyd followed his gaze and nodded, stepping up to it. As soon as he did, a light shone down from the roof and the flapping wings of the angel called Remiel appeared first, followed by the rest if his body once the light faded. "Colloyd, my precious son, you have done well."

"Uh.. Thank you fa..ther?"

"By defeating the guardian of the first seal, Efreet will surely awaken soon. In the name of Cruxis, I will grant you the power of the angels."

"The power of the angels?" Colloyd asked. Remiel didn't respond and Colloyd bowed his head respectfully. "Sorry. Thank you, my lord." A light streamed from Remiel and floated down to Colloyd. Gesea and Kraine watched, wide eyed, as it disappeared into his body and bright pink ethereal wings with blue tips sprouted from his body. They spanned out, much like an eagles wings would, and flapped at the tips a couple of times. Colloyd looked to his left and right at the wings and grinned for a moment before looking up at the angel who started speaking again.

"The angel transformation will not be without pain. Yet, it is but for one night. Be strong and endure."

"I humbly accept this trial," he said.

"Good. The next seal lies far to the east, across the sea. Offer your prayers at that altar." Without waiting for Colloyd to make another acceptance, Remiel vanished in his typical light show.

As soon as she could be sure that Remiel was gone, Gesea let out an excited yelp and ran closer to Colloyd. "Wow Col! Look at your wings!"

"I know, I know!" Colloyd grinned, stretching them and flapping them a bit. He lifted off the ground and Gesea let out another excited coo. Kraine looked on at the Chosen, trying to decide whether he was intrigued or disturbed. For Colloyd's sake, he swallowed the _other _feeling aside from those two and gave his best interested smile.

"Look, I can put them away, too," Colloyd said excitedly, making them disappear.

"Impressive," Kraine said, nodding before glancing back over the fallen monsters on the floor that were starting to fade away. He stepped away from the children and examined the gash wound in the side of the big one once again. Whoever had aided them was quite powerful. An uneasy feeling filled his gut once again as he told the children not to dawdle, but for a different reason this time.

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**A/N: Review? :) What are your thoughts?  
**


	6. An assassin goes asunder

**A/N:** Hi everyone! Another chapter of Skewed Destinies awaits. I'm on roll here! Let me know what you think!

**Disclaimer:** Nope, don't own Tales of Symphonia. I do however take credit for the themes and original parts contained within this story.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**An assassin goes asunder**

* * *

Kraine kept a close eye on Colloyd as the three of them left the Triet ruins and reunited with Noishe. He had been rather quiet during the journey and it didn't take a genius to understand that the trial of becoming the Chosen was starting to take its toll. As they ventured away from it, Colloyd's condition finally worsened and he only barely managed to stop himself from falling to the ground in a stumble by digging his sword into the sand and leaning against it. Gesea rushed to his side quickly. "Col are you alright? Your face has gone pale!"

"It is likely the result of the trial that Remiel spoke of," Kraine explained, making sure his face and voice remained calm. If he wasn't the adult voice of reason then their journey would become even more strained as time went on. "I think it would be best not to see a doctor about this and simply let the Chosen rest for a while."

"But-" Gesea cut her own argument off, knowing her brother was right. She looked at Colloyd with concerned blue eyes. He gave her a fake smile. "I'm fine. I'll be okay after a short rest. Sorry to cause so much trouble."

"You don't have to be sorry," Gesea replied, her concern still unwavering. "It's not like you can help suddenly being turned into an angel."

"Gesea is right," the Professor agreed. "Nevertheless, we should set up camp here for the night. It will make more sense travel wise as we will need to journey the Ossa Trail in order to get close to the sea."

Colloyd thought he'd heard disappointment in his teachers voice, but nodded. "Okay. Sorry."

xxx

As Colloyd tried to ignore the strange tingling sensation that ran his entire body, he looked at the Professor curiously. He was flipping through the pages of his red book, nodding to himself and occasionally using the pen that was connected to it by a string to write something down. The man had yet to really explain much about himself. Perhaps he thought it was apparent that he had never been simply a teacher. Colloyd's eyes drifted over the Ex-Sphere and Key Crest attached to the Professors right hand. He had yet to explain that either. Granted he hadn't asked yet. Given what Gesea had briefly told him about with her involvement with something called the Angelus Project, he had to wonder whether Kraine had been subject to the same experimentation.

He realised he had stared for a little too long when the Professor looked at him. "Is there something that I can do for you, Colloyd?"

Colloyd shifted uncomfortably, trying to decide in the split moment whether he should just ask. This man had been his teacher for several years and through that time he had asked thousands of questions he hadn't necessarily really wanted to know the answer to. This was one question he actually did. He decided to bite the bullet. "Why do you have an Ex-Sphere?"

For only a moment, a flash of something strange appeared on Kraine's face. Colloyd would have missed it if he had blinked. He didn't know what to call it though.

The Professor cleared his throat and looked down at the gem on his hand. "I have had it for a very long time. It not only improves my fighting abilities but also serves to remind me of my sins."

"Your.. sins?"

Kraine glanced away. "Now that I've answered your question, can you answer one of mine?"

"Okay, sure."

The Professor turned to him and he startled a little. He could see both of his eyes, which in itself was a rare occurence since his bangs usually covered one of them at all times. "Why were you raised by a dwarf?"

"Dad found me and mum in the forest at the bottom of the cliffs along with Noishe. She died before she could tell him her name but he said there was no doubt that she was my mother."

"Do you know what happened to her?"

Colloyd looked down. "Dad says it was wolves but I know better. It must have been because of my lineage... and I.. I remember something."

Kraine turned back to his book. "It is none of my business. You don't have to tell me."

"I remember my mum looking different. I remember her voice crying out in pain. I remember that it was someone with a human figure that attacked her."

"And what of your father?" The words tumbled out of Kraine's mouth before he could help himself.

Colloyd shook his head. "I don't know anything about him. I remember looking up at the stars while sitting on his shoulders though. I think he must have been quite-" The boy frowned and tilted his head. "Why am I telling you all this stuff anyway?" He got up from his spot as a signal that their conversation was over and headed over to Gesea who was happily stirring the curry she was making. It smelled delicious.

"Do you want to try some Col?" she asked.

"It's done?"

The elf nodded. "It's pork cutlet curry. My favourite food." She looked over at Kraine. "Don't worry, I haven't put any cabbage or tomatoes in there."

Kraine nodded only slightly. "Then I will not have to eat sand tonight."

"You don't like tomatoes?" Colloyd questioned. "Looks like we have something in common."

The usual solemn line of Kraine's mouth twisted into something of a grimace. "I had thought you liked all fruits, Colloyd."

The dual wielder shook his head. "As far as I'm concerned, a tomato is a veggie and up there with bell peppers." He cringed at the thought of the food he disliked the most and at remembering a time in home economics class when he had first had the misfortune to try a bell pepper. His dislike for tomatoes had been fully known by then. He wasn't exactly sure why he disliked them so much, but even looking at the bright red _vegetable _made him feel oddly uneasy.

He took the bowl Gesea had offered him and thanked her for her work before settling down on the opposite side of Noishe to Kraine. He shoveled the food into his mouth, almost burning his tongue in the process. Kraine glanced at him and heaved a sigh before lifting a spoon to his own mouth and blowing the contents. Colloyd ignored him and grinned as he complemented Gesea to hide how sick he suddenly felt. So that he didn't give her the wrong impression, he abruptly stood from his place and excused himself.

"Don't wander too far," Kraine said to him as he walked by. He nodded absently and hoped his face didn't look as green as he felt it should. Kraine watched him leave their immediate camp to go over behind a group of dried out bushes, ignoring every instinct in his body to follow to ensure nothing bad happened.

"Do you think Col is undergoing some biological changes in his body?" Gesea asked. Kraine snapped his head back to his sister to listen. "Becoming an angel sounds like it'd be tough," she continued.

"I expect that it is," Kraine nodded, before going back for another spoonful of curry.

Gesea sat next to him to eat her own food. "What do you think will happen at the next seal?"

"I'm afraid I don't know," Kraine replied simply. Gesea watched him, looking somewhat skeptical. Kraine cleared his throat. "Although study suggests that he will become closer to becoming an angel of course. We will have to wait to cross the sea to find out." He was unable to hide his cringe at that.

Gesea reached her hand out to his arm. "Kraine.. can you tell me why you're so afraid of water one day?"

"We have gone over this many times," Kraine responded, his voice suddenly authorative. "There are certain things that I do not wish to recount, even to you."

Gesea crossed her arms and looked to the fire set in the middle of their camp. "At least you have those memories."

"Gesea.. I'm sorry," Kraine apologised. Gesea gave a sigh as a meaning that she heard and accepted his apology, but said nothing more on the matter.

ooo

Kraine awoke the two children early the next morning so that they could get a good start toward the mountain where the Ossa Trail awaited them. After a very rationed breakfast, they made sure their campsite had been demolished completely and moved on. The desert air seemed noticeably cooler as they got closer and closer to the trail and though Colloyd and Gesea seemed none the wiser, Kraine noticed that someone else must have recently made the trek. Two separate pairs of footprints were imprinted in the sand every now and again. While he convinced himself that the Ossa Trail was a normal route for travelers so long as they were relatively prepared, something in his gut told him it might not be as simple as the first explanation he could think of. He reached a hand out to Noishe to give him a light petting. The "dog" whined and looked at the ground, signalling that he had noticed the footprints as well and possibly a scent.

During their first steps onto the Ossa Trail, the group were forced to don the extra coats that they had lugged around in their packs for some time. As Colloyd pulled his over his shoulders and made his way toward the first incline of the trail, a small pebble fell in front of him from above. He looked up, squinting as the sun glared in his eyes a bit.

"Stop!" yelled a voice from above.

The light from the sun was suddenly blocked out by the shape of a person dropping right toward him. He quickly backed away and watched as she landed on the ground. She glared at him, making him take a few very quick steps backward down the trail and toward Kraine who had his hand to the hilt of his sword.

The girl stepped toward him. She looked to be around his age. "Are you the Chosen of Mana?"

"Um.. yeah? Do I know you?" he asked curiously. She was wearing pretty strange clothes. If _they_ weren't memorable enough, then the red curly locks of hair held high above her head in a topknot was something he thought easily identifiable. He stood staring, searching his memory banks. It wasn't every day that someone asked you if you were the best kept secret in all of Sylvarant.

The girl raised one eyebrow at his quizzical expression. "You're cute but definitely not observant!" She drew a dagger from the small sheath connected to a belt around her thigh and charged for him. "You're going to have to die today!"

The dual wielder Chosen took another quick step back as the girl charged at him while Kraine strode forth, withdrawing his sword with a metallic scrape. Before anyone could do anything violent though, Colloyd found himself tripping to the ground and hitting something round beneath himself. With a strained squeak, a wooden trapdoor right in front of him opened while the girl stood directly above. She seemed to hover comically there for a split second before giving into gravity and falling with a high pitched scream.

"Uh oh," he gasped, Gesea mimicking him exactly. He got up from his spot, hearing a crash from the hole. "Uh.. Whoops! What should I do?"

Kraine stood beside him. "You don't need to worry about it. If she had not fallen in, you might have been killed."

"You really think she was trying to kill me?"

"Likelihood of her trying to kill you, one-hundred percent," Gesea answered, slapping her hand to her forehead in exasperation. "Col, she had a knife and everything."

Colloyd looked down the hole. "I can't help but feel a bit sorry for her."

Gesea looked too and started doing something that looked like counting with her fingers. "Even assuming her weight to be about fifty-five to sixty kilograms, and this hole to be ten metres deep, and calculating the gravity constant at nine point eight, the impact shouldn't have been fatal."

Colloyd laughed. "So you basically mean she's alive, right?"

"Probably," she concurred.

Kraine walked past them and stopped at the foot of the incline where Colloyd had first been attacked. "In any case, we shouldn't linger. If the fall was not fatal, she is likely to come after us as soon as she is able."

Gesea and Colloyd agreed and followed him, accompanied by an unsettled Noishe.

xxx

They made their way up and around the trail. Kraine would have wondered why it was so quiet if the assassin hadn't tried to attack them earlier. Clearly she had wound her way up the trail and climbed to a higher point to obtain the element of surprise. That must have meant that she knew that they would be passing through. He took a note to self to ensure he investigated how she knew their movements if they had the misfortune to come across her again.

As though Colloyd had been listening to his thoughts, he fell into step beside him. "Why do you think people are trying to kill me? I'm not doing this journey for fun." He tilted his head in the other direction from the one it was in currently. "But I guess it _is _sort of better than the alternative since I'm almost eighteen and all."

"There are always those that reject salvation," Kraine replied before stopping for a brief moment. "Do you mean to say that the church even had an arranged marriage set up for the Chosen?"

Colloyd shrugged indifferently and glanced ahead at Gesea, who had stopped to wait for them since they had slowed their walk considerably. She still seemed to be out of earshot. "I guess even a dead man needs to contribute to the W.S.P."

Kraine's mouth went dry as he wondered what to say to him at that point. Colloyd's expression only lingered on a frown for a moment longer before his eyes expressed curiosity. Kraine steeled himself for the question he knew was coming.

"By the way Professor.. Do you have a-" "-That is not a topic for discussion," Kraine spoke over him, trudging forward and hoping he hadn't sounded too irritated. "You know that everyone must contribute to the Worldwide Survival Project by the time they reach twenty-one or face the penalties. There is no need to ask such a silly question."

Colloyd blinked and followed quickly. "Sorry."

Kraine sighed and shook his head. "Think no more on it, but bear in mind that asking such personal questions can get you in trouble."

Colloyd nodded thoughtfully, apologised once more, and headed up the trail to join his best friend. Kraine followed silently and with Noishe at his side for the rest of the trip up and around the mountain side, brooding in his own thoughts. He was only able to relax a little when they finally exited the last rocky slope and began to smell the relaxing scent of sea breeze. The small fishing port of Izoold awaited them as their first destination to attempt finding a way to sail across the sea.

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**A/N: Welcome to the end of Chapter 6! Please review! :)  
**


	7. Boat over troubled ninja

**A/N: **Greetings all! I hit a milestone for my fanfiction of 500 views recently. Thanks to everyone who has been reading! I appreciate every single one of you. As always, enjoy the following chapter and if you have some time, shoot me a review. I'd love to hear your guesses on what's going to happen!

**Disclaimer:** Don't own Tales of Symphonia sadly. I do take credit for the original themes within this story though.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

**Boat over troubled ninja**

* * *

"Wow, so this is Izoold?" Colloyd did a 360 turn around himself and breathed deeply. There were only a few houses, an inn and a convenience store. Most of the houses looked to be made out of wood and were fairly small. "It smells amazing here."

All around them fishermen and sailors were working in one way or another. Morning appeared to be a very busy time for them. Children ran around under the adults feet as they fixed giant nets and worked on small fishing boats or cast lines out into the sea which surrounded the western tip of the small port village.

Gesea didn't appear to agree with Colloyd's statement because she plugged her nose. "The smell of fish is suffocating."

Kraine agreed, giving her a light pat on the head as he glanced around himself. "We should try to find a passenger ship at the docks and leave," he seemed to stiffen a little, "as soon as possible."

"I'm afraid you'll be outta luck," a sailor nearby chimed in upon hearing him. "There aren't any passenger ships runnin' at the moment. I only got 'ere because a guy named Aifread happened to be going in this direction at the same time as me."

"Is this Aifread still around?" Kraine asked.

"Nope. Talk to Lymax in the house just up the slope there." The sailor pointed behind himself. "She's the only one in the village with a boat able to take the seas. Maybe you can convince her if you mention Aifread to her." He bid them goodbye to go about his daily business. The trio stood in thought for a few moments before the Professor took the initiative to head toward the woman named Lymax's house.

The door was a tad open when they got to it, so they all decided to just step inside. Immediately they were met with the sight of a somewhat short brown haired woman gazing at the wall to their left, a strange expression on her face. She was probably Lymax. "Can I help you?" she asked with a glance over them when the door shut behind Colloyd, her expression fading.

"We were wondering if you could tell us where a man named Aifread lives now?" Kraine answered, quickly coming up with the best way to mention him.

The woman flinched at his name and heaved a sigh. Colloyd thought she looked like she was thinking deeply, Gesea thought she looked wistful and lonely.. but Kraine, he didn't need to guess. The look on her face was one that he had remembered on another woman's face from long ago. It was undoubtedly anger mixed in with a kind of dutiful adoration. Whatever this Aifread man had done, he certainly wasn't very popular with this woman right now.

"He's back in his hometown of Luin," Lymax answered. She sighed and reached into the pocket of her knee-length white and blue patchwork skirt to take out an envelope. Whatever it contained must have been quite important; it was even sealed by a large red glob of wax.

"Is that letter for Aifread?" Colloyd asked, forward as usual.

Lymax nodded. "Yes, but since the monsters have started appearing more now that the journey of regeneration is underway, we're all stuck here unless we can find actual mercenaries willing to keep us safe from attacks. Most mercenaries don't do that for free though." She cast another glance over the three of them and her eyes widened. Kraine, already knowing where this was going, swiftly interrupted her. "If it is mercenaries you need, we are more than capable of helping you."

"Oh really? You would?!" Lymax's eyes sparkled with hope. "Okay, meet me at the docks!" She rushed past them and left her house. It was only then that the rest of them noticed the old lady sitting in the corner of the room and gazing out of the small window set into the wooden wall beside her. She smiled at the three sets of eyes on her and nodded politely. They returned the gesture and silently decided to follow Lymax to the docks.

The docks of Izoold brimmed with even more sailors scurrying about. In the midst of them, Colloyd saw Lymax standing at the end of a low jetty, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Perhaps we should re-stock our food supply first," Kraine suggested when Colloyd and Gesea started toward the woman. Before they had a chance to disagree, he turned and headed for the small pop up stand labelled 'fresh goods', reaching for the sack of coins that dangled securely from his belt. Even with the monsters they had 'fought' through their trial in the seal of fire, they were going to be on strict rations for a while longer.

xxx

"There you are," Lymax said when they approached a while later, putting one hand on her hip as though she were expecting an explanation. When she didn't get much of one, she turned to the boat in the dock next to them. Kraine found himself glaring at the thing until Colloyd stepped ahead and asked Lymax when she would be ready to leave. He hadn't prepared himself mentally yet and hoped that the woman would say...

"I'm ready when you are," she said.

Colloyd cheerfully said that they were ready and looked back at him and his sister, who was standing by his side with a knowing grimace on her face. Even if she didn't know _why, _Kraine knew she was enjoying the fact that he was uncomfortable with the situation he had found himself in. A small part of him wanted some understanding from the pink haired adolescent, but that would only come from the truth which he was not willing to part with.

"Come on Kraine," Gesea said, grinning as she took his hand and led him to the ship.

He pulled away defensively and glanced over the boat again. It barely looked seaworthy, but what other choice did they have? Clearing his throat, he stepped onto the boat. It rocked under his weight and he found his heartbeat starting to rise. Telling himself to stay calm lest he get questioned by both Colloyd and Gesea, he managed to step onto the wooden death trap and make his way to a secluded area as far away from the front as he could. With a snap of the flimsy looking sail into the wind, they were on their way.

xxx

"Now we can finally get to the next seal!" Gesea shrieked excitedly as she stood next to Colloyd, her legs spread apart in a balancing pose. The two of them had decided to make a game out of who could stand for the longest time without falling over when the boat hit a rough patch of water. Colloyd made sure to smile at the thought. "Yeah!" He cocked his head back to look at the Professor, who hadn't budged an inch since sitting down. "Professor Kraine, you should come feel the wind on your face!"

Kraine mumbled something and shook his head. Colloyd went to take a step forward but instead found himself jolted off to the right when a giant wave chopped against the boat. He scrambled, seeing the water over the ship come into view for a moment before a hand caught his wrist and he was able to steady himself.

"Colloyd, you should not be so reckless," Kraine said, letting go once he saw that he was alright. "This boat is tiny and barely seaworthy. You will fall in if you aren't careful."

Colloyd nodded and glanced down, feeling his cheeks flush with embarrassment when he heard Gesea laughing at his near miss.

Lymax, hearing Kraine's words gave an insulted grunt. "Gee, I'm so sorry my ship is too "tiny" for you! Just focus on keeping an eye out for monsters."  
"We shouldn't have to worry," Kraine replied to her. "From my studies, monsters have a habit of sensing when they will be defeated."

"Cocky as a swordsman _and _a scholar are we?" Lymax said, raising an eyebrow. "Interesting. If Aifread wasn't already my salvatorian, you would have done nicely."

"You're _married _to this Aifread guy, Lymax?" Colloyd's eyes grew wide.

Lymax glanced away and crossed her arms. "Not anymore. We had our child in accordance with the W.S.P and all that but there was no point in staying together really."

Colloyd looked a bit disappointed. "Iselia must have just gotten lucky. All the salvatorians in the village stayed together after children and became good friends."

"Iselia?" Lymax blinked and tilted her head. "That's the village of oracles! Do you know the Chosen?"

Colloyd stuttered, but Kraine quickly stepped in to control the situation before his cover was blown. "Yes. The Chosen is quite an interesting person and I'm sure they will do their best to regenerate the world."

"Yeah," Gesea chirped, grinning. "Though I always worried that the Chosen might have a lot of trouble flying when they try to ascend to heaven to meet Origin. They're not the most.. coordinated."

Colloyd turned away from Lymax and shot his friend a glare. She laughed loudly. Seeing that she was probably at her limit of questions about the Chosen, Lymax went back to manning the steering wheel of the boat. The port town of Palmacosta was slowly coming into view.

xxx

"We're here," Lymax said when they arrived a short hour later at the cobblestone and wooden planked port. Colloyd excitedly jumped from the edge of the boat to the dry land, Gesea following soon after; both unaware at the dual feeling of discomfort and relief Kraine felt at finally being able to leave and not being allowed to be the first off. He took a deep breath and slowly stepped off to join the other two.

Colloyd held his hand out to Lymax. "Thank you, Lymax. What are you going to do now? Will you be alright going to Luin from here?"

Lymax grimaced, looking to think it over before nodding. "Someone else said they would be willing to escort me to Luin. Thank you for your help in getting over safely."

"Alright. Be careful Lymax."

"You too, and please call me Lyme."

The group all gave her one final nod of thanks before heading off. Lymax watched the teenagers run off from Kraine toward the marketplace alley a short distance away and as he quickened his pace when they left his sight. When they merged into the crowd, she turned back to her boat and headed for the cabin trap door. She opened it and slipped inside to look over the small living quarters. A woman with red hair held up in a high top knot sat up from her position on the bed, rubbing her eyes. "We're here?"

Lymax smiled. "I'm surprised you slept through the journey."

"Give me a break, I've been pretty busy lately," the woman said as she took a stand and stretched. She looked at Lymax, her arms crossed behind her head. "So we're to head for Luin now?"

"Yes that's right," Lymax nodded. "We'll head out as soon as you're ready.. Sheelos, was it?"

"To women it is," Sheelos replied with a smirk.

Lymax slapped her forehead. "I've only known you a short time and I'm already sick of hearing of your supposed exploits."

xxx

"Wow, look at all these weapons Col!" Gesea had stopped at a weapon merchant this time and was pointing up at a pair of twin swords, followed by a chakram and a wider normal sword. Colloyd found his mouth watering a little at the sight of such craftsmanship on the twin swords. Everything seemed precise, right down to the little engravings on the hilt where it met the blade.

"I don't think we'll have enough to buy anything here though," the pinkette elf said disappointedly as she watched a customer hand over a huge wad of cash to the merchant and get very little change back. Colloyd nodded in agreement and was about to walk away when Kraine placed a hand on his shoulder. "Did you not have some swords that we could sell?"

Colloyd wasn't sure why, but he felt extremely disappointed that the teacher had pointed this truth out. The twin swords hadn't left his backpack since he had looted them and yet he felt strangely attached to them. Hesitantly, he dropped his backpack and took them out, noting the Professors gaze on him the whole time.

"I..it can't be," the weapons merchant gasped upon seeing the blades in his hands.

"What?" he asked, a little more alarmed than was probably necessary.

"Those! In your hand! Could I please take a look at those?"

"Uh, sure?" Colloyd handed them over and watched as the weapons merchant took out a magnifying glass to look over the swords closely.

"To all that is holy..." the merchant breathed, glancing up at them. "There is only one way that someone would have these swords in their posession. They would have visited and went _inside _the famous seal of fire."

_"Uh oh.." _Colloyd edged away suddenly, knowing where this was going. He hadn't had any idea that the swords would be the death of his secret in the new town.

"It is easy to see how you can come to the conclusion you seem to have," the Professor said before either side could say anything more. "However, do you think we would make a mistake as to reveal we were the group with the Chosen in a huge city like this?"

The merchant looked from his blue gaze to the weapon and back up again. He seemed to be considering this. "Now," Kraine said as he stepped closer. "How much would you be willing to pay for this artefact?" He looked down at the red-clad dual wielder next to him and noted how he tensed. "Do you not want to part with them?"

Colloyd shrugged. "It's not like they're useful or anything, but.. I kinda wanna sharpen them and _see." _He pointed to the sword sharpener next to an assortment of other tools.

"Then we will be taking it back," Kraine said to the merchant. The man obliged with a very disappointed look on his face. Kraine nodded up in the direction of the sharpening stone and the merchant proceeded to take it off of the display. "That'll be eight-hundred gald."

Colloyd's eyes almost popped out of his head. He looked at the Professor, shaking his head vigorously. Kraine ignored him and instead of reaching for the money in the sack at his side, he reached into his jacket and took out another small bag of a deep red colour. He handed it to the merchant. "Exactly eight-hundred gald."

The merchant didn't look like he dared to question Kraine and instead just wrapped the sharpening stone up in paper, stuck some sticky ta pe to it, and put it in a small carry bag. Colloyd took the package gratefully and walked away, his eyes on the apparently wealthy Professor.

xxx

"Why'd you buy it Professor?" That was the question Kraine knew Colloyd was dying to ask. When they eventually left the marketplace and started into the town of Palmacosta, it appeared he could hold it in no longer.

He decided to interrupt the boy. "Call it curiosity toward the unknown," he said. "I'm simply wondering if two swords might suit you better. Even if they don't, I will still benefit from sharpening my own blade."

"I'm glad I don't have to worry about sharpening mine," Gesea teased both of them. "Mine just comes that way."

"Yeah yeah, rub it in," Colloyd laughed, proceeding to give her a noggy. Gesea escaped from under his grip and he looked back at the tall teacher/swordsman. "Thanks Professor."

Kraine let a small smile slip and break his stoic facade for a moment before quickly replacing it. Colloyd laughed a bit. "Gesea! Your brother _smiled!" _

"It seems that the world really _does _need regenerating now!" Gesea laughed back.

While Kraine experienced discomfort at the fact that his companions seemed to think him devoid of emotion somehow and Colloyd and Gesea continued to talk while walking, they all forgot to watch _where_ they were walking. The only time reality came back was when they came out from the side of a house adjacent to the main street of Palmacosta and Colloyd crashed straight into someone. He fell to his backside with a surprised yelp.

"Owch, watch it!" cried the other person.

"I'm so-" Colloyd paused in his apology when he saw the unmistakeable electric blue hair of his treasured Professor of many years. Professor Yuan Ka-Fei.


	8. A lot of time saved

**A/N: **Wow, chapter 8? Already?**  
**

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Tales of Symphonia, its characters, the original plot or any locations mentioned. I do take credit for the original themes and plotting within this story however.**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

**A lot of time saved**

* * *

The green gaze of the Iselia professor of old locked onto Colloyd and his mouth set itself open just slightly in surprise. There was an aura of silence as Kraine and Gesea looked back and forth between the two. Colloyd quickly stood and offered his hand. "Professor!"

Kraine's attention shot to him in question, but he soon realised that the boy wasn't referring to him at all. His gaze was still firmly on the blue haired man as he helped him up.

Yuan's shocked face disappeared and he cleared his throat. "Colloyd. How nice to see you. It has been quite some time."

"I know, I know!" Colloyd chirped. "It's great to see you as well!"He started to bombard the man with a variety of questions, including where had he left to, what had he been up to all this time, and what was he doing in Palmacosta. He stopped to breathe for a moment and wait for Yuan to talk when he seemed to realise that he had completely forgotten his manners. "Oh! Professor! These are my friends Gesea and Kraine."

Yuan's gaze lifted to the other two. Gesea looked up him with a somewhat curious expression, while Kraine found himself suddenly getting irritated at the seemingly constant smirk he had. He cleared his throat and decided a better introduction was in order. "I am the new professor at Iselia."

"I see," Yuan said with a nod. "Call me Yuan." He looked at Gesea.

"She is my sister," Kraine replied, his tone sounding a bit more warning than was probably necessary. Silence followed the short exchange between the two Iselia professors, making Colloyd shift uncomfortably and rack his brains for something to say. "Oh!" he smiled to Kraine and Gesea. "Professor Ka-Fei is an elf as well. Isn't that cool?" When neither party looked surprised to hear that, he sighed. "I suppose you all sensed it?"

"You could say that," Yuan said. "Now if you'll excuse me, I am sort of in a hurry."

"Oh really?" Colloyd looked more disappointed than the first time he'd discovered that puppies didn't stay cute forever. "I was sort of hoping that we could catch up." He leaned in closer. "I'm on the _journey, _you know."

"I am aware of that," Yuan nodded. "The news of the oracle spread far and wide like wildfire." He scratched his chin. "Hm, perhaps it would do some good to talk a little later on. I will meet you at the inn on the west side of town this evening." He pointed to his left.

"Hm..." Kraine mumbled. "I am not sure we will still be here at that-" He saw Colloyd's pleading look and let out a sigh. "Alright. We will see you later." Yuan's smirk grew even broader at how easily Kraine had caved, but he said nothing and bid them farewell until later, heading for the what looked to be the town circle.

"Where should we go?" Colloyd asked, turning to Kraine.

"I would think it best to look for clues about the whereabouts of the next seal," the Professor imparted. "I happen to know that the Governer-General in this town has a particular book that may in fact come in handy. It is supposed to be the record of Spiritua's journey."

"The first Chosen?" Colloyd's eyes widened. "Would have been so nice to talk to her about all this."

"I'm afraid you are about eight hundred years too late, Col," Gesea commented.

"I know, I know.."

"Still, I wonder whether you would meet her when you become a full angel?" Her eyes glittered with excitement. "I should begin a list of things for you to ask her."

Gesea's musings were innocent enough, Kraine knew, but he also knew that if this conversation was allowed to go on long enough that Colloyd's masked pain would start to show. He decided to step in for his sake. "I'm sure Colloyd will have more than enough to think about without asking Spiritua a hundred questions.. despite how curious I may also be to the answers."

Gesea rolled her eyes and started ahead of the two men. Colloyd shot Kraine a quick glance of thanks before catching up to be by Gesea's side.

xxx

They reached the town circle to discover a bunch of armored soldiers surrounding a group of three. One youngster probably barely out of his teens was yelling. "We didn't do anything! Can you _see _a book on us?"

"I concur," the older male of the group nodded. "Whatever that Governer-General guy says is a lie."

"Don't play dumb!" one of the guards argued. "You pretended to be the group helping the Chosen and lied to Dorr to get the Book of Regeneration. We heard what you were whispering when you left!"

"We have no idea what you're talking about," a blonde girl around Colloyd's age spoke up.

"Sounds like they're in trouble," Colloyd said. He looked at Kraine. "Should we help them? They sound like they're innocent."

"I don't think that is a good idea," the Professor replied, looking to a set of double doors which had swung open from a large mansion just to the north of his position. Two soldiers hurried out and to the group of soldiers who were still working at questioning the random group. "Governer-General Dorr said that you may release these hooligans," one of them said. "The book has been returned by a passer-by. These guys must have ditched it when they realised that they'd get caught quickly once we realised they weren't the Chosen."

"We did no such thing!" The older male exclaimed.

Kraine couldn't help but be a little amused. It seemed that this man was trying to be him. The group looked _nothing _like theirs. It wasn't too much of a surprise that most people thought that the Chosen was a woman however, considering the doctrine that the Church of Martel passed on to its followers. He led the group toward the double doors that led into the Governer-Generals office.

One of the guards escorted the fake group off in the direction that would lead them out of town. If Kilia, the daughter of the Governer-General hadn't been watching the event the whole time from the garden in the circle, he would have given them a few choice words for the smug grins each of them wore at being released. It was like they thought they had gotten away with it.

xxx

"Greetings travelers!" a cheerful voice greeted them as they stepped into the small office. It seemed quite small considering how large it had looked on the outside. Glancing around, Colloyd noticed a guard just like the others he had seen outside standing in front of a door to his left, and another guard standing in front of an open doorway which led down some stairs on his right. Directly in front of them was a large desk that angled off to the sides and around in a short arc, and behind the desk sat a man with blonde hair and robes of purple and blue. Next to him stood another man. He looked less distinguished than the blonde somehow, but he had a more sincere smile.

"We welcome travelers, as per the teachings of Martel. May the blessing of Martel be upon those who journey," the blonde haired man continued from his earlier greeting to them. "I am Governer-General Dorr."

Colloyd waved in greeting and approached him a bit closer. "Hi! How are you? I'm Colloyd and I'm the Chosen of Regeneration. We'd like to see the Book of Regeneration."  
It felt good to say it proudly for once, since he knew they would have to tell them anyway to get a look at the book the Professor had declared he had. The shocked silence that followed his declaration made him snort a little and he had to try and hold back his laugh.

"Colloyd might not look like it," Kraine defended for the boy, "but it is most certainly true."

"We had been expecting the Chosen, but I'm afraid I cannot let the book out of my sight again without actual proof of your Chosen status," Dorr said. "We only recently had an incident."  
Colloyd felt his cheeks burning, knowing the _easiest _way to show them. He hadn't taken his wings out since he had gotten them.

The door to the exit creaked behind them and a little blonde haired girl stepped inside, walking around the group and behind the desk to hop onto a seat next to Dorr. She looked up at him. "Who are these people Daddy?"

"Oh, Kilia! You're just in time. The Chosen here is going to show us his wings!" It appeared the man had figured out the easiest way as well.

"Really?" Kilia squeaked, turning her head quickly to look at Colloyd, who had blushed an even deeper scarlet than before.

"Go on Col," Gesea said as she nudged him. "We don't have all day."

Colloyd stuttered, seeing everyone's eyes on him intently. He involuntarily took a step back, but lost his footing on a slightly raised floorboard to crash to his backside. As he winced at the pain, he heard gasps from the people in the room. It didn't take him long to figure out why. Somehow his long pink and blue wings had released from his back at the sudden surprise fall as though it were an involuntary action.

"Wow! Father, did you see?! His wings are beautiful!"

"They certainly are," Dorr concurred. He looked to his left at the kind man. "Please could you go into the back room and bring me the book, Neil?"

While they waited for Neil to bring the book out from the room past the door on the left, Colloyd closed his eyes and concentrated on making his large sparkling appendages disappear. The prickling sensation on the small of his back was strange, but it was the tickling sensation the ends of his wings gave him when they brushed against other inhabitants of the room that really irritated him. Dorr took a large tome from Neil and placed it on the desk in front of him. "I'm afraid I can't let it leave this town. However, I would be happy for you to take it somewhere in town so that you may study and take as many notes as you would like before returning it."

Agreeing with this, Colloyd took the book from the table and headed out with Gesea following. Kraine stood in his spot a moment longer, contemplating whether to lecture the Governer-General on how close he had come to losing a historical treasure to a bunch of thugs. He decided against it and silently turned on his heel to follow the duo back to the business district of town. They were due to meet the "Professor" later that evening, so he supposed it wouldn't hurt for them to book a room earlier in order to study the book. It had been a while since he had been given a safe opportunity to curl up with a book and he was quite looking forward to it.

xxx

Of course, his hopes of being able to read the book and take notes undisturbed were dashed the moment they paid for their rooms and got seated around a small wooden table in their small but cosy quarters. Colloyd had discovered upon opening the thing that it was written almost entirely in Kharlian, the language of the Angels.

"I suppose we will need to seek the help of the church in this city," Kraine said as he stood and expected the two teenagers to follow. "I know a little of the language myself, but they may be able to read it better than I since we are here." He paused with his hand on the doorknob and turned, wondering what was taking them so long to follow.

"Actually," Colloyd started. "I can read it. Professor Ka-Fei taught me a while ago."

"He did, did he.." Kraine found himself crossing his arms. "I wonder how he came to know the language of the Angels?"

"I would assume that it may be the same way you did," Gesea replied. "You are both scholars after all."

"Your sister would be correct," came a smug voice from outside the door. Kraine found himself somehow irritated just at the _sound _of the smirk in the voice. Colloyd jumped up from his spot and stepped behind him to open the door. "Professor Ka-Fei!"

"Hello Chosen," Yuan said. "I apologise for eavesdropping but I noticed your names on the guest list and asked if I could come up to see you all. I was about to knock when I overheard."

"It's no problem!" Colloyd ushered him in and offered him a place to sit next to him, precisely where Kraine had been sitting. Kraine sat down next to Gesea instead and watched as the blue haired "elf" slid the book across the table to himself and reached to a pocket in his cloak for a pair of thin reading glasses. "The Journey of Spiritua, by Spiritua," he read.  
Colloyd and Gesea laughed at the name but stopped when Kraine shot them a glare which meant something along the lines of "don't be disruptive." He might not be able to read it himself but he was definitely taking notes. He had already set up his red research notebook and pen in preparation.

Yuan spoke of raging flames in an ancient city deep within clouds of sand overlooking some kind of city and lighting darkness. Then he spoke about a place with pure, flowing water where it seemed like it might be flooding. Colloyd zoned out when he heard Professor Kraine scratching away at his notes as though his life depended on it, before zoning back in to hear about a pillar of the world and something about giving it praise. _That _one he knew for sure. _That _was the Tower of Salvation. Thinking about the giant tower that had appeared the day he had 'officially' become the Chosen filled him with both dread and happiness.

"I can't read any more than that," Yuan said as he gently closed the book. He slid it to Kraine, who had looked like he wanted to steal it away from right under his nose.

"I must admit, your knowledgeable in the field of Kharlian is impressive," Kraine said as he gently opened the book and looked over it himself. The pages were very fragile.

"Professor Ka-Fei taught me a lot when I was growing up," Colloyd said with a huge smile and a nod toward his former teacher. Yuan grimaced and shook his head. "You do me too much praise, Chosen."

Colloyd glanced away uncomfortably. "Could you please stop calling me that?"

Yuan recoiled slightly. "I meant it only as a sign of respect. Forgive me." He waited for Colloyd to smile his usual happy smile before continuing. "I would also ask that you stop calling me by my last name and adopt a more relaxed tone."

"Y..you mean, call you _Yuan_?" Colloyd gaped as though it were the most shocking suggestion in the world.

Yuan nodded. "We are not in school anymore and you are not my student either." He tilted his head toward Kraine. "You have a new professor now."

Colloyd thought it over for a second and then nodded. "Alright!" He took a deep breath. "Yuan, tell me what you have been doing all these years since you left Iselia."

"I suppose I have just been wandering and exploring this world. It has many oddities that I couldn't help but be curious about," Yuan replied, his smirky countenance actually fading.

"Really? What did you find Prof-uh.. Yuan?" Colloyd laughed and scratched his head. "Going to have to get used to that."

xxx

The late afternoon grew into evening and the evening quickly grew into night. The hustle and bustle of the city dulled and the sound of crickets replaced it. Kraine, having grown tired of listening to the banter of Colloyd and Gesea with Yuan, had retreated outside and climbed a small hedge to the rooftop of the inn. He had been lost in thoughts while he absently counted the stars when the sound of the door of the inn alerted him. From the position of the moon, he figured it around midnight. Curious to see who was going on a moonlight stroll, he sat up and looked over the edge of the roof. A head of blue hair greeted his gaze before the man seemed to sense him and looked up. He smirked and waved. Kraine nodded in greeting, but apparently his curiosity was mistaken for something else because a short time later Yuan met him on the roof and sat down beside him.

"Palmacosta isn't the easiest place to see the stars, is it." he said.

"No," he replied to be polite. "The pollution of the city and the lights make it somewhat difficult."

"Still, beats the cold weather of Triet at night."

Kraine didn't reply, making Yuan tilt his head back in a groan. "Look. I think we might have gotten off on the wrong foot."

"Whatever gave you that impression?" Kraine asked. He hadn't meant it to come out sarcastic but the man just put him in that mood somehow. It reminded him of someone.

"I can assure you," Yuan continued without directly answering him, "your _precious student_ will not be stolen by me. I have no intention of overstaying my welcome."

"My-" Kraine cleared his throat. "In any case, the journey of the Chosen is not one a mere ex-teacher from a small school in Iselia and a scholar should be journeying on."

"Indeed," Yuan agreed. "However the same could be said for yourself and your sister, couldn't it?" He shifted a bit. "Are you just a professor or something more?"

Kraine responded with little more than a 'humph', making Yuan roll his eyes. He opened his mouth to say more when an ear shattering scream broke the calm silence of the night.

"No! What are you doing! Get away from her!"

The sound of a girl yelling from somewhere a bit further down the main street reached their ears. Kraine tensed and looked at Yuan, who looked to be wondering what to do. Curiosity and concern getting the best of them at the same time, they shimmied down the side of the inn and stayed to the shadows as they made their way there. When they got close enough to see, both hid in around a corner in an alleyway to observe as though they had done it a million times before.

A brown haired woman around their age was being dragged out of the general store by a group of four Desians; a younger woman around the same age as Colloyd holding onto her and trying to pull her away from them.

"You're lucky that you're getting off so lightly!" one Desian said as he pulled the younger woman away from holding onto the older woman.

"Why aren't the city's militia doing anything to stop this?" Kraine asked softly to Yuan. "This doesn't seem right."

"I heard that they were all having an overnight training session over at the Ossa Trail," the bluenette responded in kind.

"Hm.." Kraine put his hand to his sword, hidden under his cloak. "It is unwise to attack them. This town could very well become the next Iselia if we are rash."

"I agree," Yuan nodded, sounding as unsure as Kraine felt. Both stood quietly and continued to watch the scene unfold.

"Cacao Mocha, you are under arrest and due to be executed at o-six-hundred hours for defying the wishes of the great Lord Magnius and refusing to provide us with supplies." The Desian talking turned to the Desian on his right. "Go and oversee the gallows being built in the town circle. We'll take care of her." The Desian gave a silent nod and left them.

"No! Please! Stop! Mum!" the girl cried as the Desians made to drag Cacao toward the edge of town and presumably to a human ranch nearby. Kraine glanced at Yuan and caught his eyes. Both men shared the gaze, silently egging each other to be the one to move first and neither wanting the blame of the aftermath on their hands.

"Stop!" yelled a new voice in the commotion, making both snap their heads in the direction Cacao had slowly been heading toward in the custody of the Desians. There a red-clad boy stood, illuminated by the street lamp directly above him and with his arms stretching out far from his sides to block their way. In one hand he spun a chakram, while in the other he gripped the hilt of his sword.

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**A/N: Reviews breed regular updates and happy feelings for me as a writer! :)** I'd love to know if you're enjoying it and your thoughts!


	9. The practices of a Professor or two

**A/N: Sorry for the super late update to those of you who are reading this! I've been suffering writers block, planning my wedding and painting a set for a stage show. Anyway, hope you enjoy chapter 9 and all its plottiness! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia, its characters, plot or setting. I do take credit for writing this story and the original themes contained within however.**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

**The practices of a Professor or two**

* * *

Kraine and Yuan's eyes widened as they fell on Colloyd in a readied battle stance against the Desians. "It looks like-" Yuan cut himself off when the auburn haired professor stepped out of hiding at the update in their little situation. He sighed to himself and contemplated his next move carefully.

"Get out of the way boy!" One of the Desians who held the rope that was tied around Cacao's hands laughed a bit. "You have no idea who you're dealing with!"

Colloyd threw his chakram at an angle so that it skimmed around and chopped the rope in half. "That's where you're wrong! You guys are just bullies!"

The moment Cacao was free, the Desians moved to re-capture her. Colloyd charged at them. Two of them turned to block his advance while the third caught Cacao and held her in front of him defensively while he put a knife to her neck. "One more step and the woman dies."

At hearing this, Colloyd stopped his advance on the Desians and quickly jumped a safe distance back. "Why do you attack innocent people?" Colloyd asked. "I'm going on the journey, so why don't you just leave people alone!"

"The journey?"

"The Chosen wishes for a world of peace. I think it would be wise for you to stop this nonsense now," Kraine said as he cleared his throat and revealed his location to their enemies by slowly taking his sword out of its sheath and pointing it in their directions.

The three Desians turned away from Colloyd to gaze over him. "Who are _you?_"

Kraine put one hand on his hip and raised an eyebrow. "Do you always turn your backs on your enemies so arrogantly?"

"Professor!" Colloyd yelled from behind the Desians and Cacao. He turned and saw a flash of blue hair directly in his line of sight. The metallic clang of a followed by bright red hair held up in a top knot and two silver weapons clashed together and glowing softly, one a sword and one a large axe.

"Perhaps _you_ should also think about not turning your back on your enemies!" Yuan yelled through gritted teeth before pushing the man who would have sliced straight into Kraine's back to the ground with a fiery growl.

"Lord Magnius!" The Desians yelled from behind Kraine.

'Lord' Magnius jumped away from Yuan. "What are you fools doing!? Didn't I tell you to not make a scene!"  
"We weren't sir," the once tough sounding Desian whimpered.

Magnius clenched his fist. "If we let everyone in town know now, there's no way tomorrow will go off without a hitch." He kept his axe upright and cast an eye over Yuan and then Kraine behind him. "Are you from the cities militia?"

"Do we _look _like we're from the cities militia?" Yuan laughed. Magnius growled, not liking his tone. Kraine had to agree, but he wasn't in a position to judge at that point considering he had just potentially saved his life, or in the very least had saved him from a very unwanted situation.

"I highly suggest you and your goons leave this town in peace before we are forced to protect the Chosen from harm," Kraine said with a meaningful glare at the Desian leader.

Magnius looked understandably surprised at the revelation and looked past him to Colloyd, still stayed from doing anything while the goons had a knife to Cacao's neck. A twisted grimace cracked through his shock after another moment and he laughed. "You are interrupting our plans and so you shall perish here!" He raised his axe once again and ran for Yuan, who appeared to be waiting for the opportune moment.

_"Lawah urshys ilai!"_ Yuan yelled.

Kraine blinked, understanding exactly what the blue haired man had just said. He turned on his heel to see that he was in fact right and that the two Desians who weren't holding Cacao hostage had ignored the Chosen and set their sights on the person they thought the most dangerous. The battle started. Kraine charged and met with Colloyd in the middle of a flurry of metallic clangs. They turned their backs to one another and continued their assault, their adversaries blocking their attacks and returning their own, only to be blocked as well. In the midst of it all, the third Desian released the helpless Cacao and took up arms to try and help his comrades get the upperhand. It didn't do him any good. Colloyd was too fast for him and threw a distracting chakhram around him when he had been going for Kraine and then quickly cut him below the knees to make sure he couldn't try anything again. Kraine did a similar move and the two of them shared a quick look of reassurance that the other was alright before setting their sights on the foe Yuan had been keeping busy.

The blue haired ex-professor was fluidly dodging Magnius' axe attacks as Kraine and Colloyd caught up and entered the fray. Before either of them could do anything noteworthy though, Yuan saw an opening in his attacks and knocked the giant axe straight out of his hands before kicking him to the ground with a well placed roundhouse kick. Magnius didn't show fear despite his unfortunate situation. Instead he scrambled upright and jumped back from them, his aura glowing.

"Crap," Yuan mouthed, feinting to his left just before a magical fiery head of a lion charged for him.

Magnius tried to charge for his weapon but Kraine got there first. He took a slash at him and did a mid air kick to knock the bulky man back. He lost his balance and fell, making Kraine grimace and point his sword to the mans throat. This time he wouldn't be getting up. "I suggest you and your _friends _leave here at once."

"You can't seriously be showing him mercy!" Yuan spluttered to Kraine incredulously.

Kraine frowned and side-glanced at him, raising his sword just high enough that Magnius could get out from under it without slicing his jugular in half. He looked back at Magnius. "In future you would do well to heed the Chosen's wishes."

Magnius' eyes widened for only a moment before he called to his goons to stop being weaklings and head back to the ranch. With one final glare he retreated with his men.

"Guess I shouldn't have expected anything different," Yuan muttered under his breath. Kraine took quick note to ask him for his meaning at a later point. For the time being his concentration shifted to that of the girl from the general store as she ran to her mother. Colloyd was already stalking closer, concern playing on his face.

"Mum! Are you alright?!" The girl looked over her mother carefully. She looked up when Colloyd approached. "How can I ever repay you?"

Colloyd shrugged and scratched the back of his head. "You don't have to. It kind of comes with the territory."

"The territory?" the girl asked. Colloyd stuttered, suddenly realising that she must not have heard the words spoken by the Desians.

"Is it true that you are our Chosen?" Cacao asked, blowing his thinly veiled cover. He nodded awkwardly and was glad when Kraine and Yuan stepped up behind him.

"You should probably go home now and speak nothing of this to anyone," Kraine said as he sternly cast an eye over the two.

The woman nodded but the girl seemed more hesitant as she looked over Colloyd like she had just seen Spiritua herself. "You're nothing like I thought."

"I suppose that's a good thing," he laughed. Not being able to stand her constant stare, he held out his hand to her. "Uh..I'm Colloyd."

She smiled broadly and took his hand. "Chocolat. I'll never forget what you did for us." With little more coaxing, she and her mother left them and entered back into their house, locking the door with a loud click and pulling the blinds down to block out the light which had been shining through the window to the outside.

Just when Colloyd was about to let out a relieved sigh and turn to his comrades to congratulate them on a job well done, they were interrupted by the sound of shattering glass. A loud and familiar yell sounded. Kraine's somewhat more relaxed stance immediately tensed and he broke into a run, Colloyd and Yuan following behind.

"Kraine!" yelled Gesea as they got closer. They stopped as they came to the inn to see a pile of shattered glass on the ground in the dimly lit alleyway to the side of the building, and the figure of Gesea from the top window of the inn. She waved to them casually and Kraine let out a visible sigh of relief.

"Gesea, are you alright?" Colloyd asked as he looked from her to the pile.

She nodded and looked at Kraine. "We need to leave, _now." _Her voice sounded urgent.

Colloyd gaped. "Now?!"

Kraine seemed to understand though and gave a nod. "Start packing our belongings Gesea. We will be there shortly." She nodded and left the window. Kraine stood in thought for a second before silently heading to the door of the inn. Colloyd shot Yuan a look of questioning and was met by a shrug. He didn't know what it was about either. They heard the sound of Kraine clearing his throat as he held the door of the inn open for them and quickly made haste to follow.

xxx

Colloyd didn't know whether it was a good or a bad thing that they had been able to pack up their belongings in a very short amount of time, but once Kraine had examined his sister carefully for any sign of wounds, followed by him and Yuan, they were bidding the inn owner farewell. Just as they were at the door to leave though, he called them to stop with a very angry sounding voice. After a short explanation, they learned that he knew they had broken the window upstairs and that they would have to pay for it. Apparently he had very good hearing and knew 'rats' when he saw them.

Yuan had been quick to dispel two problems as they arose. The first being the issue of Kraine about to give the man a lecture on the fact that they were most certainly not rats. The second being to shut Colloyd's mouth when he was about to pull the "I'm the Chosen" card out of his hat to hopefully get out of the problem. Instead he pulled a larger-than-life wallet out of his own rucksack and handed the inn owner a wad of cash. The man looked at the wad suspiciously, but upon unfurling a couple of notes he looked both shocked and satisfied. The group of four left the man to count the money and headed for the exit of Palmacosta.

Just as they neared the exit, Kraine stopped. "The Book of Regeneration. We should not leave with it. It may be some time before we come back."

"You should go on then," Yuan said to him, holding out his hand. "I'll return it to Dorr in the morning."

Kraine hesitated. He had his own reasons for wanting to return it himself to the Governer-General, but that was not going to look particularly insightful. He gave in to reason and handed over the priceless book. "Be sure not to lose it," he grumbled sternly to him.

"I will guard it with my life," Yuan replied with his usual smirk, the face of battle leaving him in that moment. "Take care. I think our paths may yet intertwine again so I will not say goodbye." He looked at Colloyd and nodded at Gesea before turning his back to them and heading toward the town circle. Kraine frowned, wondering why he was heading there _now. _Still, he had to put his priorities in order. Gesea was in danger here and he needed to get her away as soon as possible.

xxx

They set out from the port city to travel along the waters edge, donning their thick coats once more as they did. Several times Colloyd tried to start a conversation with Gesea, but was met with a strange silence from her. She was obviously worried about whatever had happened back at the inn. He was still yet to get an explanation out of either elf and it took all the discipline he had to not stop them both in the midst of their getaway and question them until they gave him answers.

Kraine eventually led them a bit further away from the beach and to a small clearing to the slight east of a path that wound around between the mountains. The large rocky landscape served as a great shield from the wind and soon Gesea was casting a fire spell on a group of sticks to make a small camp fire. Colloyd sat next to it first and looked at the elven siblings.

Gesea gave him a somewhat guilty look. "Sorry Col.. This must be a bit confusing." She looked at Kraine, who gave her a very hesitant look. Eventually after what looked to be a silent eye conversation between the two of them, Kraine slumped his shoulders a little and dropped to his backside in front of the fire as well. "I suppose if we do not tell you, it could put this journey in significantly more danger."

Gesea sat next to Colloyd. "A Desian came into the bedroom when I was sleeping."

Colloyd's eyes widened. "Is that when you-"

Gesea nodded. "I managed to overpower him and push him through the window. He ran away just before you all came back from your stroll." She looked in thought. "It appears that something else must have happened though."

Colloyd and Kraine nodded and she continued on with her story. "You see, they're after my Cruxis Crystal." She unbuttoned her shirt, but knowing Kraine was watching him carefully, Colloyd didn't dare to look at what she was trying to show him. He quickly ushered her to do the top back up so that the Professor would stop glaring. She saw her brother and nodded, understanding finally. "We don't like talking about the Angelus Project because it brings up bad memories."

"The Angelus project.." Colloyd shifted left to right in thought. "You said about that once before. How you and your sister were a part of the project."

Gesea nodded. Colloyd looked at Kraine and he quickly shook his head to the invisible question that was being asked. Apparently he hadn't also been a part of the experiment. He waited for either elf to say more, but when silence fell over the camp he sighed and decided to be a bit more direct. "Did something happen to your sister?"

Gesea looked down at her feet as she hugged herself. "We don't know. I don't remember much at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Gesea was not herself, you could say," Kraine explained. "It took a long time, but I eventually found a way to cure her problem. It required a special type of Key Crest, much like the one that you wear around your own Cruxis Crystal." Kraine glanced down at the gem on Colloyd's hand.

The boy tilted his head in wonder. "So the people who experimented on you want the crystal back? Why don't you just give it to them?" He frowned. "But they were Desians?"

"I can not give it back to them," Gesea said sternly. "Kraine was very clear that taking it off would cost me my life. As for the Desians and the project.. we're as much in the dark as you are." She grimaced at Kraine. "However, one good thing has come from this. While I may have lost contact with our sister, I was reunited with my long-lost brother."

"Long-lost?" Colloyd asked. "You didn't know each other your whole lives?"

"Well, not exactly," Gesea giggled. "I just don't remember having a brother. The experiment made me lose my memory and along with it some of my memory of family and other things. Kraine told me about our sister when he came and took me away from the family home to take me to a Dwarf who could make a Rune Crest from the materials he had collected." She tapped her chest and Colloyd noticed he could hear a faint metallic ching. She looked a bit depressed. "When the Desians discovered that I was no longer just a tool for them to wait and watch, they demanded their Cruxis Crystal from me and told us that the one my sister had was useless."

"So the Crystal your sister has.." Colloyd smiled. "It sounds like she must be safe, even if you haven't seen her for a long time. We should find her!"

"I'm afraid that would be impossible," Kraine interjected.

"Impossible?" Colloyd asked. He watched Gesea and Kraine share another loaded glance and decided that this was the end of the conversation. Even now it seemed he was missing some of the story.

The Professor seemed to sense his angst for the situation and looked directly at him. "Colloyd, come and sit with me so that I can teach you how to sharpen your sword and chakhram."

Gesea laughed as Colloyd's eyes widened with renewed interest in a different topic. He leapt to his feet and carried his backpack toward the Professor.

xxx

As Colloyd sat with Kraine, he couldn't help his own curiosity once again. After hearing the small part of his story with Gesea, he had become convinced that his sword skills had something to do with it. "Hey Kraine?" He asked once the Professor finished showing him how to sharpen a sword by using the sharpening stone on his own sword first. "So where did you learn to fight? Have you been a mercenary before?"

Kraine sighed. "Colloyd, as much as your natural curiosity is a virtue to you, it is not so for others."

Colloyd looked down. "I'm sorry." He perked up again though. "But I think I understand why you don't want to talk about your family now." Kraine didn't answer, making him confirm what he had guessed. He hoped it wasn't true...but..

He sat quietly again and watched the teacher mumble how to do things as he worked on his chakhram. If he didn't want to talk about the truth, who was he to force him? After all, the man had saved him many times already from having to talk about his inevitable fate.

* * *

**Hazzah! The end of the chapter! What do you think? Please review and make my day!** **Some exciting plot developments for this story are soon coming, so I hope you all keep reading! **


	10. A good day ruined

**A/N: **Welcome to chapter 10 everyone! I hope you're enjoying it. Hope to hear your thoughts on this one!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia, its characters, location or setting. I do take credit for the original themes contained within this story though!

* * *

**Chapter 10**

**A good day ****_ruined_**

* * *

Colloyd walked ahead of Kraine and Gesea, his arms crossed. He wasn't _angry, _but he wasn't happy either. Kraine had promised to wake him in the night to take over watch, but he hadn't. When he asked about it, the Professor had simply responded that he should enjoy sleep when it was offered to him and that it was his job to protect him. That wasn't why Colloyd found himself in a bad mood. It was the fact that despite their relatively solid ground as they made their way to Hakonesia peak under Kraine's direction, the Professor insisted upon telling the both of them to watch their step periodically. It would have been a simple warning if he hadn't been engrossed in his notebook the entire time they crossed the region. Either he had traveled this way many times before and didn't feel a need to look where he was walking, or...

"Owch!" Colloyd found himself tripping over a small patch of overgrown weeds protruding from a crack in the dry ground. His face would have met the ground if he hadn't put his hands out to catch himself.

"Col!" Gesea called with concern as she ran to meet him. He helped himself up and examined his hands. He had cut them open quite disturbingly, eliciting a gasp from Gesea when she saw the damage. Kraine came up to his other side and knelt down beside him. He let out a sigh and looked at Colloyd with an "I told you to watch your step" expression. The look faded after another moment to a look of more concern than anything else. Colloyd watched as the Professor put his hands over his bleeding ones and checked for signs of debris. Although it was interesting to watch him pull out several small shards of rock from the wounds, Colloyd couldn't help but be distracted by something else. There was no way that this shouldn't have hurt. He could still feel a dull ache in his bleeding hands, but nothing like he knew he should be feeling.

"This might sting a little," Kraine said, knocking him out of his thoughts. He pulled Colloyd's hands together so that it might look like he was reciting a prayer, and covered his hands with his own. He closed his eyes and muttered "first aid".

Colloyd couldn't help but stare as he watched an aura of white outline the teachers every feature. After knowing Gesea could use magic and summon a pretty cool weapon as if from another dimension, he shouldn't have been surprised. Still, something was somehow _different _about this. He couldn't quite put his finger on it. Gesea must have noticed the odd expression on his face because she was giving him a confused look. He shrugged but tried not to move too much. He could feel a coolness in-between the palms of his hands. It was quite pleasant.

After a few short moments longer, Kraine stopped his magic spell and took his hands away from his. Instinctively Colloyd opened his hands up to peer at the work the Professor must have done. He stared in surprise. There were no visible markings what-so-ever that he had cut himself. Kraine nodded to himself as he looked over the results too, before getting to his feet and starting ahead down the path. "Be more careful, Chosen."

Colloyd sighed and nodded. The Professor was very well aware that he disliked being called the Chosen and so seemed to now be experimenting with the use of the term as a punishment. He looked at Gesea for support but found her shrugging her shoulders and looking at her brother ahead of them. He made sure not to get distracted in his own thoughts again while they trekked, lest Kraine decide to accompany the 'Chosen' namesake with one of his trademark glares. The thought of that sent a genuine shiver down his spine.

xxx

The rough terrain changed as they closed in on the mountain hill with the very distinct house right at the very top. They passed through a sloppily guarded front entrance and made their way up the steep incline to the flat top where the house sat. There were a couple of small vendors of healing goods and a few townspeople chatting to one another off to the side of the main area, but other than that the place looked pretty empty. Colloyd decided that most people would just travel through without stopping. His curiosity did peak at the strange little hut to his right as they silently headed for the exit on the other side, though.

Two guards stood in their way now, looking more alert than the ones on the other side. As Gesea went to pass through first, they both made her jump by clashing their weapons together in a way that meant she could not pass through without being chopped to ribbons.

"Halt," the guard on the right ordered. "Please show us your road pass."

"Road pass?" Gesea tilted her head and looked toward her brother. He let out a sigh of annoyance. "Has there been some kind of change? What are these passes you are referring to?"

"You haven't heard?" the guard on the left asked.

Colloyd shook his head. "No, I don't think we have." He also looked to Kraine, who sighed in annoyance again. It appeared even the Professor didn't have _all _the answers.

"The Chosen came through here recently, and so in an effort to reduce risk of injury to the Chosen, we are requesting that all people who seek to follow the same trail as the Chosen get permission from Governer-General Dorr to pass through, or purchase one from the shop here." The way he said the latter part of his sentence sounded almost liked a choked down laugh.

"The _Chosen?" _Colloyd's eyes widened. It seemed the imposters were at it again. He was about to open his mouth to point out that _that _was impossible and that he was the Chosen, but was cut off by the Professor.

"Thank you for telling us." He steered Gesea and Colloyd a short distance away, ignoring their "explain" looks until he stopped.

"Kraine-" Gesea started.

"Don't worry Gesea," Kraine interrupted her. "I am well aware that we can not go back to Palmacosta for quite some time."

"Then why-" Colloyd started. He found himself being cut off by the Professor as well.

"Think about it," he started. "If there is some sort of imposter that is pretending to be the Chosen, then that may be used to our advantage."

Colloyd nodded slowly, finally understanding. "You plan to use the fake Chosen as a good decoy for us." He remembered the red haired assassin from the other day and felt bad.

Kraine nodded and then let out another deep sigh as he patted the money bag on his waist. "I'm afraid that the result of this decision will also mean that we will need to fight many monsters of this region in order to get the road passes."

"Do you think it's expensive?" Colloyd asked. He reached into his own pockets. There wasn't even any lint in the creases. He gazed behind the Professors head at the house where they would probably have to buy the pass from. There was no time like the present to find out. He started toward it, his companions in tow as though they had all simultaneously thought the same thing.

xxx

The inside of the place was extremely cramped and smelled distinctly of metal. It reminded Colloyd of when his dad would set to work on making various things for his various clientele.

A small elderly man with glasses three times the size of his eyes crouched around in the western corner of the room. He looked over them immediately, appearing to be sizing them up. "If you're looking for road passes, you've come to the right place," he uttered, sounding almost automatic.

"How much gald would we be set back, sir?" Colloyd asked politely.

The man looked surprised at the question- as though nobody had asked it in quite a while. To be fair, Palmacosta wasn't _that _far away from their location and most people probably found it easy enough to get permission from Dorr.

The man looked at him briefly, passed his glance over Kraine, before stopping on Gesea. "For the little lady, I will give a pass for free."

Colloyd smiled broadly at that, though Kraine quickly took quite a defensive stance as he placed one hand on Gesea's shoulder. The old man looked back at Colloyd. "For the two of you, the price would come to two million gald."

"T..t..two..." Colloyd couldn't even finish his words, his mouth gaping too much. "Y..you can't be serious!"

"Or something valuable," the old man added, brushing off his shock. He nodded his head to Colloyd's left at something. "I'm a collector, you see. I even have the much coveted Book of Regeneration in my collection!"

For the second time, Colloyd gaped. Next to him in a glass case and sitting on book holder was the book he himself had held in his hands not too long ago. There was no doubt about it. It was even open at the funny front page that read _"The Journey of Spiritua, by Spiritua."_

"It can't be," Gesea whispered as she came up next to him.

"What is this nonsense?!" came a surprising exclamation from Kraine from behind them. Colloyd didn't need to see him to feel the anger radiating from him. The last they had seen the book, Yuan had headed for the town circle of Palmacosta with it. For some reason or other, it had ended up at Hakonesia Peak.

Colloyd wasn't willing to accuse his old teacher of anything underhanded just yet though and turned to Kraine. "Maybe the fake Chosen stole the book from Dorr again and brought it here."

"That is an irrational concept, Colloyd," Kraine remarked. "If they were caught once, then how would they get away with stealing a priceless treasure such as this book a second time?"

Colloyd had to admit it, his teacher made a pretty solid argument. He shrugged his shoulders though, still not willing to admit that Yuan had lied to them about returning the book to its rightful owner.

"Ahem," the old man cleared his throat and waved a hand to get their attention. Three gazes immediately turned to him and he flinched back- probably mostly from Kraine's still furious demeanor. "Did I hear correctly that your name is Colloyd?" He pointed his question to Colloyd, who nodded in confusion. The man clapped his hands together. "Well then! I have already been compensated for your road pass, as well as your two companions." He nodded to Kraine and stopped on Gesea. "N..not that I wouldn't have still given _you _a free pass of course."  
Kraine growled softly under his breath at the old man, his patience wearing thinner and thinner per second.

"Really?" Colloyd took three laminated pieces of paper with the words _Palmacosta to Asgard Road Pass _printed on them from the old man. "Um.. If you don't mind my asking..." he started. "Who paid you for these?"

The old man tapped his nose. "Koton the Collector doesn't reveal his clients, _ever. _If I did that, I would be in a lot of trouble."

"But most of it looks like junk," Gesea said in a very matter-of-factly kind of way. Colloyd became worried that Kraine would give her one of his glares but instead found himself surprised when the teacher gave a half agreeable nod. Koton didn't appear as at ease as them at Gesea's comment though. He tapped the wooden walking stick he had been leaning against on the ground three times to get their attention, before pointing it past Colloyd and to the door. "Leave now, you disrespectful people!"  
They nodded and quickly did as he said before he could change his mind on being honest about their freebies.

With road passes in hand, they had no trouble gaining access past the guards to head down the other side of the peak. The town of Asgard could be seen in the distance. It would be the first place they would investigate for the Seal of Wind. Kraine had earlier mentioned that the Book of Regeneration had described the next seal being in a windy place, in a ruin, so naturally Asgard being the city of Wind and Ruins on its vacation posters was a good place to start. Colloyd grimaced as he remembered the spring that the Professor had had in his step when he had been explaining that just hours earlier. Now any of that previous excitement about investigating a ruin was gone, replaced by a solemn face that seemed to be trying too hard almost to mask the thoughts ticking along behind it. He felt sorry for him and decided to at least attempt to ease his mind.

"Professor," he started, dropping back from his spot next to Gesea for a moment. "Even if Professor Yuan did sell the book to Koton.. at least it's safe, right?"

Kraine's face went paler and he glanced down at the red-clad boy. "Although you make a good case, you are far too trusting. I do not trust this old _professor_ of yours one bit. He is far too experienced in battle to just be someone who has gotten by on his travels between cities." He wanted to add more about his distrust for the 'elf' but held his tongue when he saw Colloyd's eyes express sadness. He looked away from the face of the boy, trying to remain firm in his stance on things.

"I know it looks bad," Colloyd said, clenching his fists into balls and looking to be thinking very hard. "But..." he quivered. "But.. Isn't it better to trust people aren't bad? He might have sold the book to Koton to pay for our road passes!"

Kraine couldn't avoid eye contact after that and looked into the deep blue of Colloyd's eyes. They looked determined. Very determined. He accidentally cracked a smile and saw Colloyd realise he might be making some ground. "That _must _be it! So please Professor, let's still be friends with Yuan if we see him again?"

Kraine sighed and shrugged his shoulders in defeat. Colloyd clapped his hands together at his success and quickly bounded back up the road to where Gesea was walking to tell her his deductions on the mysterious donation of road passes for them all. Despite his reluctant agreeance to drop his suspicion, Kraine thought to himself that this 'Yuan' had better have a good explanation as to how he thought it a good thing to steal a book from the Governer-General in Palmacosta and potentially get them promptly arrested the next time they stepped foot in the town. Not that it mattered yet anyway. If he had his way they wouldn't be returning to that region for quite some time. Not until they absolutely had to. A shiver went down his spine as he thought about the inevitable to come. Those washtubs..

He could feel his palms getting sweaty at the thought and shook his head to try and eliminate them before the children ahead of him suffered for his lack of awareness momentarily to the world around him. Swiftly he drew his red book of research notes from the satchel at his side and concentrated on them instead. They were always a good halfway distraction.

Although Colloyd observed that the Professor had seemed deep in his notebook once again as they traveled closer to the large city in-between a crevice in the mountains and fought off a few easy field enemies along the way, it didn't take him long to get a noticeable bound in his step when they neared the entrance. "Simply wonderful," he started commenting as he looked up from his book every so often and then scribbled something down. Other similar comments continued, including "fantastic, intriguing, interesting, a marvel..."

Basically the Professor thought Asgard was cherry on top of the bees knees. Gesea looked uneasy the entire time her brother was muttering to himself as they made their way past a slope which led up into the shopping district. As they reached the centre of the town, Kraine seemed to have run out of different synonyms for awesome and looked at the two of them, still with an unnatural looking smile on his face. Colloyd understood Gesea's discomfort entirely. Some people's eyes just shouldn't _glitter _like that.

At seeing both of their looks, Kraine briefly shifted his expression to a more normal one and cleared his throat. "Ahead is the Asgard Ruins. I suggest we go and take a look." He hadn't given them a chance to answer before he headed off past them and toward an archway past a house that seemed to lead up to a great many steps. Colloyd couldn't even see the top of them but it looked like they led all the way up the mountain side. He became suddenly glad for the reassurance of wings to back him up if he happened to trip and fall.

xxx

"Colloyd, Gesea, get out your school books," Kraine instructed them when they finally reached the top of the stairs after a couple of short breaks along the way when they got to the various viewing platforms. The teenagers hesitantly did as he instructed, knowing better than to disagree. Besides that, Colloyd had to admit that he _was _sort of curious about the place. Especially if it was in fact the site of the next looked around for any obvious places to open up a secret tunnel while Kraine started to talk, but he couldn't see any.

"Time for a quiz," Kraine said, looking at Colloyd. "Colloyd, state the historical background of this ruin."

"Uh... Ah.. Well.. " Colloyd scratched his head nervously and tried to recall when the Professor might have told him this. Would it have been some point when they had been travelling here? Or some obsecure part of a history lesson at school?

Like a Martel-send, Gesea stepped in for him before he could make a fool out of himself. "It's the temple where Cleo the third held a ritual to offer a sacrifice to the Summon Spirit of Wind in order to quell a storm that had raged for a week."

Colloyd punched his hand. "That's it!" He grinned at his friend. "Well done Gesea!"

Kraine didn't seem as impressed though and gave Colloyd a short glare. "Have you learned nothing these past three years?"

"Well I like P.E, Art and Home Economics." Colloyd was going to add to the list, but decided to take another course of action upon Kraine's irate look. "All of which you have taught, Professor."  
Professor Kraine heaved a sigh before turning to the giant stone dais. "This delicate curve is said to express the flight of the Summon Spirit of Wind through the sky. In addition, it is said that this stone is infused with a large volume of mana, and at night..."

Although Colloyd was interested in hearing the Professors words, something else caught his eye from a way off. Something red fluttering in the breeze. He wandered to the other side of the stone dais to peek around the corner, only to see a man and a woman seated with some kind of device next to it. The woman wore a bright red bandana over her head of jet black hair, with long tails that flapped in the breeze wistfully.

"If we use the breaker bomb here, we can easily destroy this confounded dais," the woman said.

"But, Harleisha… This is a rare and valuable remnant of the Balacruf Dynasty. We really shouldn't be destroying it," the man sitting crouched reasoned with her. He had somewhat similar features to her, including the same colour hair. Neither of of them had bothered to look up from the device yet to see Colloyd's thin white scarf flapping in the breeze and giving away his location.

"Are you telling me you'd rather I die Linar? Me, your own flesh and blood?" Harleisha stood angrily, showing Colloyd that she was heavily pregnant. "And what of your niece?"

Linar sighed. "You know that is not what I'm saying!"

"What are you doing?" Colloyd asked, hearing enough to warrant making his appearance known.

The two apparently elven siblings, judging by the curve of their ears, jumped out of their skins at his voice. "Wha…who are you?" Linar asked.

"I heard you talking about a bomb," Colloyd said as he trailed his eyes to the device they had been sitting in front of.

"It's not what you think! We weren't trying to destroy the ruin at all!"

At the somewhat loud explanation, Colloyd got a distinct feeling of unease up his spine. Somehow, he was _sure _he could feel the deep blue glare of Kraine on his back- or at least the back of his head. The birds stopped chirping, the wind even seemed to lower its somewhat persistent whistle. He listened to the sound of marching feet from above him and braced himself with a knowing grin for what he knew was coming. The two elves took their gaze off of him and heightened it to the height of the dais. Colloyd watched in amusement as confused expressions were quickly replaced by terrified ones.

"…What...did you just say?" Kraine asked, in a soft and dangerously calm tone from behind.

Colloyd felt sorry for them. "W..wait Professor, I'm sure it's some kind of misunderstanding!"

Kraine eyed the contraption and then looked back at the elves, his gaze becoming even more intense. He stepped down from the tablet to stand protectively in front of the device. "You have no idea of the importance of this ruin. I suggest you fix your ways and apologise to the dais immediately." He went to gesture to the large ruin behind him but instead his hand met a switch. A sharp click sounded, followed by a rushed succession of ticks.

Three pairs of uh-oh's sounded upon realising what had happened. Kraine just stared ahead, not moving his hand from where it had knocked the switch. The ticking continued. Harleisha and Linar flinched back suddenly. "Look what you've done!" they exclaimed together.

Kraine spun around wordlessly and looked at what he _had _done, before turning back to them and putting his hand to his sword as though he were very close to actually using it on them. "What _I've _done!?" he spat furiously. "Do not blame your actions on others!"

"None of that matters!" spoke a voice beside Colloyd.

Gesea stared at the bomb worriedly. "It is important to disarm this. Otherwise it is highly likely that we will all die."

"Gesea's right!" Colloyd said, kneeling down in front of it and looking at the wires. "It doesn't look like it has a disarm switch either."

"Of course it doesn't!" Harleisha scoffed. There was a gasping sound as though she meant to say more but had been silenced. Colloyd couldn't tear his gaze away from the bomb now. Every second counted. He reached for the red wire and prepared to pull it out. Unfortunately for him, while he was good at these sorts of things, there was a reason his Dad had told him to always point the wood carving knife away from himself. His hand slipped suddenly off of the red cord and into the green one.

_BEEEEEEEEEEEEEP! _

The moment that followed seemed to go in slow motion for Colloyd. Kraine jerked him back from the device and gripped him tightly. To his left Gesea took a flying leap past them both. Then time resumed to normal and they were flying off the edge of the mountain and toward their deaths.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the cliffhanger. I couldn't resist doing a _literal _cliffhanger. Please review!


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